


Pinky Promise

by twoplayer_gays1031



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: A literal shit ton of angst, AU, Abusive Relationship, Alcohol, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, Angst, Cyber Bullying, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fighting, Human Sides (Sanders Sides), Like eighty percent angst, Literally the slowest burn of all time, M/M, Mental/verbal abuse, More tags might be added over time!, Sanders Sides - Freeform, Slow Burn, Swearing, Themes of slight anorexia?, Violence, a little fluff, mentions of abuse, thomas sanders - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:15:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 37
Words: 165,236
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23372299
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twoplayer_gays1031/pseuds/twoplayer_gays1031
Summary: When confronted with the prospect of falling out of love with Roman Prince (his current boyfriend), Patton Kratz faces a difficult dilemma. Invited to spend the night with Roman at his brother's party, Patton ends up looking to Roman's life-long best friend, Logan Sanders, for comfort and advice. They spend time together at the party, and both know that Roman is never allowed to discover what happened that night. As Patton and Logan start to become closer to one another, not just knowing each other through Roman's influence, their newly formed bond becomes a source of comfort for Patton as his world begins to fall apart.
Relationships: Logan x patton, Logic x morality, Logicality, Roman x Patton, Royality - Relationship, creativity x morality
Comments: 92
Kudos: 90





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So! I've started a new story.  
> I still absolutely love my old one, Bruising & Breaking, but I've lost inspiration for it at the moment. And if I'm being honest, the person who helped me write this story, the one I've just started, inspired me to start B&B back up again all those months ago. But now I'm more interested in the story we shared for months.  
> This story has actually been in the works since July of 2019, and is entirely written from a roleplay I shared with a friend on the Sanders Sides Amino. Her current username is "Dad_is_feeling_bored" and mine is "infinitesimally gay"  
> (P.S. there will be no Prinxiety involved in this, because even though I love that ship, my roleplay partner does not and I didn’t want to force that on her)  
> Although we have been doing this roleplay for a long time, I feel like now is a great time to begin writing it down and sharing it with the world. It's an intense story, so buckle in kiddos, cause it's one hell of a chaotic ride.

Patton sat in the middle of class watching the clock tick away. He was bored, but it was only a few minutes until lunch. At least that meant he wouldn’t have to sit in one place anymore. He stared down at his notebook, not having much else to do in order to waste his time. The pages were covered in gel pen ink, scribbles and writing. It was just how he concentrated.

Today was a lazy day for him. He was wearing a light blue hoodie with black jeans and checkered vans, and his hair was significantly messier than usual. However, it didn’t bother Patton in the slightest.

Being almost three months into his Junior year, Patton had been a little overwhelmed with the sudden changes in his classes, as they were a little more difficult than he would have liked. But they were fun, at least sometimes. His boyfriend, Roman, was a Senior, and instead of being in class, he was out in the hallway waiting for Patton’s class to end. Patton only knew this because it was routine for them. Roman had always been very “protective” when it came to his little puffball of a boyfriend.

On the other side of the school, Logan was bored and tired for an entirely different reason. He groaned, watching the clock on the gym wall tick behind the protective cage placed around it. Yes, there was a cage around the clock. Some students here had broken the clock once before with a tennis ball. If that wasn’t any indication of how reckless Logan’s gym class was, then there’s no use explaining.

Loud pop music blared from the speakers, as some students had complained that they needed music while exercising. All it did for Logan was make him wish he could rip his eardrums out.

He was waiting for lunch. He desired to see his two friends, Roman and Virgil. In the last few months of the last school year, as well as over summer, Logan had become decent acquaintances with Roman’s boyfriend, Patton Kratz. Logan and Virgil were Seniors, so they had not been able to meet Patton until Roman introduced them.

Roman and Patton had met while working on the school musical together. Patton was part of the orchestra, playing guitar. Roman was the male lead, obviously.

During the past few years of highschool, it was undeniable that Logan had drifted from Roman slightly. They were still best friends, at least. Roman had become more interested in sports and theater, leaving Logan to enjoy his studying and student council meetings. But as different as they were, Logan was looking forward to the bell ringing for lunch. He was usually quite amused with the little group of people he associated with, and enjoyed the time they spent together. However, because all four of them were so wildly different in personality, they preferred a wide variety of subjects, and thus had very different schedules. He didn’t really get to see them very often as a result.

When the bell finally rang, Logan went back to the locker room and changed out of his gym uniform quickly, and began to make his way to the cafeteria.

Patton wasted no time in getting out of that classroom. He thought even one more second would lead to him passing out on his desk. The class was physics, and he most definitely was _not_ good with that. He just didn’t find the subject exciting. It was difficult to get him interested to learn something if it wasn’t exciting.

When he stepped out of the room, he was instantly greeted by his boyfriend.

“Your hair looks messy today, did you brush it?” Roman said as he walked up to Patton and put his arm around his shoulders. He began to walk them in the direction of the cafeteria.

“Well… no, but I didn’t have enough time to fix it anyway, so I just thought--”

“Here, I’ll fix it,” Roman kept walking a short distance before pulling them aside to an empty space in the hallway, and, once out of the way of the other students, he pulled a brush out of his backpack. He always carried one for situations like these. He quickly touched up Patton’s hair and gave a radiant smile down at his boyfriend, “All better!”

Patton nodded, and returned a small smile. Over the course of time, Patton hadn’t been smiling the way he used to. Of course neither Patton nor Roman noticed the change. Roman made sure Patton was close to him as they walked into the cafeteria. It was his own way of saying that Patton was his and only his.

Logan let a small, barely noticeable smile cross his face as he saw his best friend enter the room, holding the waist of his boyfriend. His attention was quickly taken away from the couple, however, when Virgil sat down beside him.

Glancing down at the tray Virgil had placed on the table, Logan recoiled slightly, “Virgil, I have no clue how you can stomach the food provided by this school…” He was very clearly disgusted with the “food” on the tray.

Virgil simply shrugged and bit down into the sloppy joe(??) in his hands. When Logan had tried it once, his freshman year, he had vowed to never eat it again. It was this terrible mushy consistency that tasted like cardboard and was somehow both cold and overcooked.

Rolling his eyes, Logan ignored his friend, instead choosing to greet the other two as they sat down, “Salutations, Roman, Patton,” He offered a small smile, looking at them, but his eyes flickered down to Roman’s hand that was resting on Patton’s waist. He looked back up at them. Logan was not very fond of PDA, but he had no business judging how the couple showed their affection for one another.

Roman took a seat across from the two, “Hey Logan, and hello Virgil,” but as he looked at Virgil as he said his name, Roman caught a glance of today’s meal and he instantly had the same reaction as Logan. It was clear he wasn’t going to eat any of _that_. 

Patton stood next to Roman, and had given a silent wave when he had been greeted. Roman looked over his shoulder and handed Patton five dollars, asking, “Could you just go grab me something from the vending machine? I’d rather not starve.”

With a small smile, Patton nodded and said a simple, “Sure.” He walked off to go grab Roman a snack. Roman watched his boyfriend walk away for a second before turning back to Virgil, “How do you know if that’s even food?”

Virgil shrugged again, “I don’t, really. I just eat it and deal with it. It’s better than nothing.”

Logan looked at Roman with an exasperated expression. How could Virgil be so calm about the literal source of his nutrition and health, and yet be so worried about everything else? 

Deciding to move on to another topic, Logan brought up what had been in the back of his mind since the beginning of lunch. He might as well bring it up, as it seemed a little strange to him, “Patton seems awfully quiet today. Are you sure he is alright?” His tone of voice let a bit of concern slip through his otherwise disinterested facade.

Roman turned his attention back to Logan. He had been watching the food on Virgil’s tray like it was about to come alive and kill them all, but now his attention was on his long-time best friend. And all he said was, “Hm?”

Honestly Roman hadn’t noticed anything unusual with Patton, so the question sort of caught him off guard, “Oh… well, uh-- I’m sure the puffball is fine! Even if he isn’t, he’s always capable of cheering himself up in one way or another,” Roman reassured Logan that everything was perfectly fine. Either way, what he said was true. Usually when Patton got upset he would instantly get over whatever it was, then acted as if it totally didn’t happen.

After a couple more minutes of usual conversation, Patton returned with Roman’s snacks. He bought some cookies, chips, and a water because people need to be hydrated and stay healthy--

“Thanks, Pat,” Roman said as his boyfriend took a seat next to him. Patton gave a small nod to show it was not a big deal.

Again ignoring Patton’s unusually quiet nature, Roman offered Logan and Virgil each a cookie, “Want one?” They were oreos, and Roman thought those were definitely worth sharing.

Logan shook his head, as he preferred to eat healthier. His lunch consisted of a turkey sandwich, some carrots, and water. Virgil usually called him uptight for it, but Logan never paid much attention to Virgil’s teasing anyway.

Speaking of Virgil, he happily took Roman’s offer and said, “Thanks, Princey.”

Thinking back on what had just happened, Logan couldn’t help but be slightly concerned. When he had seen Patton return and not instantly gush at the thank you given by Roman, it had seemed his assumption was even more plausible. Normally, Patton would be smiling, beaming from ear to ear even at just the slightest things Roman did or said. However, Logan held in his complaint. If it was really an issue, he could ask Patton about it after lunch when they had their next class together.

Logan instantly regretted his thoughts when the first thing that crossed his mind was, “Thankfully Roman will not be there…” All Logan wanted to do was ask if Patton was okay, and he really couldn’t do that with Roman around denying that something was wrong. Logan would get a simple yes or no from Patton, and if the answer was no, he would give some awkward advice for Patton to talk to Roman about it. Simple as that.

It was just strange how Patton was being so distant…

Logan was brought back from his thoughts when Roman spoke up, “I suppose we’ll just leave you to your rabbit food then,” Roman was gesturing toward Logan’s food as he split an oreo, eating the cream first and then the cookie.

Roman glanced over at Patton and gave him an oreo. Patton looked up at him, kind of confused and a little surprised, as if he had also been lost in thought. He took the cookie and said, “Thanks… I’ll save it for later,” He just held the cookie in his hand as Roman went right back to talking.

“Do you guys eat the cookie part first or the cream? Please note that this will determine our entire friendship so choose wisely” He was quiet a second before adding, “And if you say you eat the whole cookie then I’m throwing you in the nearest garbage bin I kid you not.”

Patton smiled slightly at Roman’s dramatic opinions about how to properly eat an oreo, but nonetheless gave his answer, “Cream first, cookie second.”

Roman then turned to Logan, for some reason expecting an answer even though Logan hadn’t even taken one? Whatever, he supplied what Roman wanted anyway, “I believe that when I was younger, I would usually eat them the way that the people around me would… My mother used to eat them the way you do, so I presume I did as well.”

And then they turned to Virgil, and, without saying a word, the little nuisance looked directly into Roman’s eyes, let a cheshire grin spread across his face, and then put the entire oreo into his mouth in one bite.

Roman’s eyes widened and he gasped as he stood up, pointing at Virgil, “You! You are a _menace_ , a _disgrace_ ! I DEDICATE MY TIME TO SHARE MY COOKIES AND THIS IS THE THANKS I GET?!” Of course being overly dramatic was Roman’s specialty, “I am… _disgusted_ \--” 

Patton found this whole little show to be quite funny. He put the cookie in the pocket of his hoodie. Honestly, he would probably forget about it until later.

Virgil was laughing his ass off, for obvious reasons. He loved messing with Princey. Logan even let out a small chuckle at the scene, but then he spoke up, “Roman, I believe you said that you would throw someone in the garbage bin if they ate oreos in that way.”

Virgil’s eyes shot up to meet Logan’s, glaring at him for mentioning it. Virgil was very small, the smallest one in their group of four. Roman was athletic and tall, and could easily carry any one of them, even Logan (who was only slightly taller than Roman, much to Roman’s disdain). Virgil knew that Roman could easily put him in the garbage can with very little effort.

“You’re right!” Roman said with enthusiasm. He looked to Virgil and said, “Let’s put you back in the garbage where you belong, you disgusting roach!” He moved from his seat and then began attempting to grab Virgil.

Patton sat and watched, not really making any effort to stop it. In all honesty this is probably the least dangerous thing Roman has done whenever he gets impulsive and reckless… perhaps the right word is harmless instead.

Roman picked Virgil up by grabbing his arm and lifting him over his shoulder, proudly saying, “Alright, let’s go!”

“Roman, no! Oh my god, you dumbass!” Virgil yelled, but he was also laughing. Dumb things like this were common in their friend group, usually between Roman and Virgil, and, on occasion, Roman and Logan. Roman’s unusual form of dumbassery usually led to interesting situations such as these.

“At least find an empty one?” Virgil pleaded.

As Logan watched, he was quite amused. He glanced back at Patton who also seemed to be enjoying the sight of the two messing around like that. But there was also a hint of sadness in Patton’s eyes… Logan would ask later. He would for sure.

Turning back to watch Roman and Virgil, Logan saw Roman approach the trash can, saying, “You eat my cookie like it’s trash, I throw you in _real_ trash!” Thankfully he had gone to one in the corner of the room, which wasn’t used quite as much as the ones in the middle. There was still some stuff in there, but not much. Roman set Virgil down in it, and then tipped it over so that it would be harder for him to get out.

“I won’t hesitate to roll you! Apologize to every oreo for your disgraceful actions!” Roman put one foot on top of the bin, ready to roll it. 

Patton was actually worried for Virgil, mainly because he knew Roman would roll the trash can without any regrets. Logan glanced back and saw Patton’s obvious concern, and he felt the exact same way.

Thankfully, he heard Virgil apologize through a fit of laughter. He crawled out of the bin and smiled up at Roman. Logan let out a relieved sigh, glad that he was okay. They can be very unruly at times, and usually it just leads to casual teasing and bickering, but he knows Roman would never intentionally hurt Virgil.

The two walked back to the lunch table while getting a few stares from nearby students. Some were also laughing, but not at them. None of these students were cruel in their laughter because all were used to Roman’s usual antics, and what the strange group of Roman’s friends usually did together. Roman was quite well known around the school, so people just rolled their eyes, smiled, and moved on with their day.

“You should stop eating cafeteria food, dude,” Roman told Virgil, “I could already tell you’re getting heavier. Soon you might as well weigh as much as Patton,” Roman chuckled, and Patton scoffed at the comment. It’s true Patton wasn’t the most athletic, and was a bit on the heavier side, so of course from time to time his friends would make jokes.

Quickly moving on from the topic he might have just brought up, Roman said to Virgil, “I’m pretty sure whatever leftovers they have here they save it in a freezer and keep it for next week. You could be eating literal trash.”

“As if you didn’t just force me to do exactly that,” Virgil smacked Roman’s arm before sitting down, and then he continued, “Either way I’m still really frail. I eat good enough food at home. Besides, in a little under a year I’ll be out of here and won’t be tempted to be too lazy. I’ll have to make my own food.”

Ignoring Virgil’s little rant, Logan was once again stuck in his own mind. Despite the bit of truth behind Roman’s comment, Logan couldn’t help but be offended on Patton’s behalf. Patton was, admittedly, a little bit curvier than the other three. Virgil was small and frail, Roman was pretty muscular, and Logan was just tall and lean. A beanpole, as Virgil would say. Patton just had a different body type, is all.

_And it did not make Patton any less attractive._

Logan shook his head as the thought crossed his mind. No, no. He could think of his friend as attractive platonically, surely. He knew Roman was aesthetically pleasing. Even Virgil was, in some ways.

Yes, that was it. Just appreciation for the other’s appearance. Simple as that.

Tuning back in on the conversation, Logan heard Roman say, “Make your own food? You mean something besides a microwaved kraft mac and cheese?” Smiling proudly at his joke, Roman suddenly thought of a really random question. And because the moron had no filter, he asked it, “Okay, hear me out with this one -- do they call it mac and cheese because mac is short for macaroni? Or is it because mac is an acronym for mac and cheese?”

All of this talk about food was actually making Patton quite hungry. This whole time he’d been sitting here he hadn’t had a bite of a single thing. He quickly said, “I’ll be right back,” as he stood up, grabbing a dollar from his pocket to get something from the vending machine.

Logan had been enjoying his conversation with Roman and Virgil, but shut up right away when Patton started speaking. Logan hadn’t even noticed, but when Patton got food for Roman, he didn’t even get anything for himself? Logan chastised himself internally. He was normally so observant. How had he not noticed?

Roman and Virgil continued to talk to each other about the intricacies of mac and cheese while Logan watched Patton leave the cafeteria. It was obvious that he was watching, and Logan had no clue why he was even doing it. He was just worried about Patton’s recent change in demeanor. That was all.

Roman noticed how lost in space Logan seemed to be, and he actually found it quite funny. He wanted to throw a piece of paper or something but unfortunately he didn’t have that around him at the moment. So he just snapped his fingers instead, and once he saw Logan’s eyes widen and his head whip around to the noise, Roman said, “Earth to Logan? You good there? You looked like you were questioning your whole existence while we were discussing the very important matter of mac and cheese.”

Roman typically wasn’t the best with noticing small details, but at this point Logan’s issue was so obvious that a blind person could see it. Roman could just tell that something was up with him.

“Oh, nothing,” Logan lied, “I was just lost in thought.” Logan smiled, but it had a hint of awkwardness to it. He felt guilty. He had lied, but what was even the truth? Why had he been watching Patton? He was… concerned. He hated admitting that, but there was no other explanation for his actions. 

But this whole ordeal, whatever the cause, was Roman’s territory. Roman could handle whatever was troubling Patton, because Patton was Roman’s boyfriend. Of course, he was also Logan’s friend, but either way, troubling emotions such as these were not Logan’s strong subject.

Ignoring his thoughts, Logan resumed conversation with Roman and Virgil, choosing to ignore his worry for Patton. He was worried for someone… that was certainly rare. He’d only felt concern like this before when he was confronted with a lonely and emotionally distraught Virgil back in fifth grade… Either way, he could talk to Patton when lunch was over, and if something was truly wrong, Logan could leave Roman to fix this issue.

Roman silently dipped out of the conversation for a bit, leaving Virgil and Logan to talk while he texted Patton to ask where he was. After a few seconds, Roman got a quick text that said:

_[I just stopped to talk to Emile, I’ll be back in a bit]_

Roman shrugged and went back to the conversation. But soon enough, in fact only about thirty seconds later, Patton was coming back into the cafeteria, and he sat down at the table. He now had a half-empty water bottle with him.

Smiling at his boyfriend’s return, Roman put his arm around Patton, just because he could, and began a new topic of conversation, “Okay, so which would win in a fight? A tiger with a human arm or a kangaroo with three tails?”

Logan looked disinterested, “How exactly would additional tails aid the kangaroo in a fight? Clearly the tiger would win as it has already evolved to be a predator, while a kangaroo is prey. Their evolutionary adaptations are more significant than the random things you’ve decided--”

“Yeah, yeah. Shut up, nerd,” Virgil interrupted with a smirk, and then turned to Roman to supply an answer, “The tiger for sure, but not for the boring reasons.”

“Well who said the tiger even knows how to use a human arm? And yeah three tails could help because like… the kangaroo could smack the tiger down or something?” Roman just seemed to like kangaroos… he thought they looked like giant dogs with pointier ears. Continuing his defense of the kangaroo, Roman said, “And besides the tiger would probably eat its own arm because it’s human and like meat and stuff…” Even Roman had no clue what he was even talking about.

Then again he didn’t know what he was talking about most of the time.

Logan sighed as he listened to Roman’s side of the “debate,” but you could hardly even call it that. However, the bell rang when Roman’s nonsensical rambling was done, and Logan began packing up the containers he had used for his lunch, putting them back in his plain metal lunch box.

Virgil went and dumped his tray in the trash, and returned to the table in time to say his quick goodbyes to the group, since he had no classes with any of the three for the rest of the day.

The couple said goodbye to Virgil before he headed off in the opposite direction of the three. Since Roman didn’t have any classes with Logan, he quickly said a farewell to him, not really knowing his or Patton’s schedule well enough to know that they were literally going to the same place. But since Patton and Roman had different classes after lunch, Roman made sure to walk Patton to wherever it was he had to go.

As they walked out of the cafeteria side by side, Logan rolled his eyes at Roman’s lowkey stupidity. Logan just decided to follow them from a slight distance, not joining in on the conversation since it would be awkward with Roman having just said goodbye. You know how awkward it is when you say goodbye to someone and then you end up having to go the same direction? Yeah, that.

Patton let Roman talk the whole way to the class, making sure to listen and nod along to whatever it was he was saying. Most of it was nonsense, but Patton really didn’t mind too much.

As they were walking, Roman was talking about how the cast list for the musical had just gone up this year, and Roman, obviously, got the male lead again. It was his senior year and he was well known for his talent, so he really had no doubts he would be getting it again this year.

As Logan neared his locker, he separated further from the couple, and stopped to drop off his lunchbox and pick up the necessary supplies for English class. When he arrived, he was going to ask Patton what was wrong.


	2. Chapter 2

When the couple arrived at Patton’s class, Roman finished his conversation before giving Patton a hug and a kiss on the cheek, “I’ll see you after school,” He smiled down at Patton before heading toward his next class. Thankfully there was enough time for him to have walked Patton like he did, but also make it to his own class.

Patton didn’t say anything back to Roman before he left, just gave a small smile before walking into his English classroom. He chose to sit in the middle of the room. He was actually excited for this class, because he felt like he was pretty good at it. In fact, he was in a Senior-year honors class, instead of with his fellow Juniors. He just always thought that writing was a great way for people to express themselves, so he had latched onto the subject pretty early in his life.

He took out a small notebook from his book bag, and of course that notebook was covered in various stickers, such as a pride one, some Steven Universe and Adventure Time ones, etcetera.

When Logan walked into the room, he instantly spotted Patton, and sat down next to him. Patton looked up from his notebook, and since Logan now had his attention, he offered Patton a small, slightly awkward smile. Patton quickly returned a smile that was much the same as it had been most of the day: small and weak, just there to be polite.

Opening his mouth to ask Patton what was wrong, Logan suddenly hesitated. He shut his mouth again and looked away. What would he say? Again, comforting people was most certainly not his most refined skill. However, if Logan was being honest with himself… he was nervous to ask what was wrong. Because what if Patton decided to be honest? And, more importantly, what if the small theory in the back of Logan’s mind turned out to be correct? He hated to think about it, but it seemed that based on Patton’s recent actions… _Roman_ could be the problem.

Slipping back into the current situation, Logan saw Patton turn away and open his notebook after he had offered that small smile from before. 

Patton looked down at the pages, and saw the colorful doodles around the corners, made with bright, multicolored ink pens. Today he really didn’t feel like using those pens…

His thoughts were interrupted when he saw Logan open and shut his mouth in his peripheral vision. It seemed he wanted to talk about something. Patton wanted to question it, but he decided against it. Normally he would ask Logan what’s wrong, but for some reason he just… didn’t want to.

Logan turned back toward his own stack of school supplies on his desk, and thought through this. He usually had to meticulously plan his words in situations like these.

Patton was upset. Logan could never really understand emotions very well, at least when it comes to processing them and reading other’s expressions. This was very evident by the fact that he was at a complete loss for how to handle this whole situation. However, he knew quite well that people like Patton preferred to talk things through.

But usually it would be Roman, or even Virgil who did that for Patton. It was strange that neither of them even noticed something was amiss. And logically, it made sense to ask what was troubling Patton; nevertheless, it made Logan nervous.

He turned back to Patton and just asked anyway, “Patton, I have noticed that you seem… uncharacteristically quiet as of late. You have not been smiling as much, and you had even forgotten to get food for yourself when you went to get Roman’s food… Are you alright?” Logan wasn’t expecting a smiley expression or a happy response, in fact he may have even predicted that Patton would start ranting whatever issue it was. Whenever something troubled him it seemed to be something small that wasn’t of much significance.

Acknowledging the signs he’d already noticed, Logan should have known better.

Patton stared at Logan for a second, unsure of what to say. He would hate to lie to a friend, but he also didn’t want Logan to worry. He snapped out of his staring and gave a quick response, “Oh, well, uh…” He gave a small smile and then continued, “You don’t have to worry about it, Logan. I’m okay, but thanks for asking…” He decided to say what was true, Logan _really_ didn’t need to worry about him.

“Uh, was that all?” Patton asked, wanting to make sure Logan didn’t have any more questions. He also _really_ wanted to change the subject. He began to fiddle with his hoodie strings, and it helped him calm his nerves for a bit.

Despite Patton’s words, Logan noticed how his words tapered off at the end, getting quieter, more unsure. And he saw Patton glance down at the desk, after finishing his sentence, and he seemed to be uncomfortable with the conversation. All that did was make Logan even more suspicious. And then Logan’s eyes focused on Patton’s hands, messing around with his hoodie strings. This was an obvious sign of nervousness, as people tend to fidget with things as a product of nerves or fear. These were not things Logan could easily ignore.

Attempting one last time, Logan asked, “Are you sure? I am just worried about you,” It was strange to admit something like that so openly, but being honest had worked with Virgil years ago, so who’s to say it wouldn’t work again now? Besides, he assumed that letting Patton know how he feels would help him feel less nervous. This was a two-way conversation, and in the end, Logan wouldn’t make Patton tell him anything if he was uncomfortable.

So when Patton decided to move on, so did Logan.

“Just feeling a little down, but don’t worry too much about it. Like Roman said, I usually find a way to bounce back. Everything will be fine,” He smiled again to show that he was okay, but it was somehow even weaker than before. It seemed fake even to Patton.

He tried to make it sound like what he was feeling was harmless and that he would get over it soon enough. He knew he was lying to Logan, and himself. Just the thought of it was making him feel sick to his stomach. He really did want to tell someone, but it was hard. He always tells people to talk about how they really feel, but when it comes down to it, even Patton can’t take his own advice. He thought it would feel good to tell someone, maybe. Now just wasn’t the right time.

As Patton turned back toward his desk with the fake smile etched onto his face, Logan couldn’t help but _still_ be concerned. He had not expected that. Logan watched Patton like he was calculating him, but Logan’s expression still showed a hint of sadness. It was obvious that he could tell something was seriously wrong. He knew Patton was keeping something from him.

Patton had a right to his privacy, anyway. If he felt uncomfortable telling Logan, then Logan would respect that. And besides, Patton hadn’t even known Logan for very long. He knew Roman long before he met Logan and Virgil, and so it was obvious he would feel more comfortable around Roman. If something was really troubling Patton, Roman could help. It wasn’t an issue.

But there was still the voice in the back of Logan’s mind telling him that Roman may be the problem.

Logan ignored the thought, and decided to move on to another topic. He let it go. Patton didn’t want to tell him, and that was okay. However, Logan didn’t get a chance to move on to another topic, because the bell rang and their teacher, Mr. Torres, walked in, and the class began.

Patton instantly shut up when the teacher walked in, and began to focus on what he was saying. Still, Patton couldn’t help but feel relieved that he had brushed aside that topic when he could. He didn’t know if he could handle whatever the outcomes could be. Maybe he was just being over-dramatic.

He distracted himself by absentmindedly writing down notes about whatever Mr. Torres was talking about. Although he kept himself busy, the sick feeling in his stomach remained. Patton didn’t know if it was guilt or something worse.

For the first time in his life, Logan _wasn’t_ paying attention to the teacher. He knew he could catch up on the lesson later, in fact he was already ahead. No one needed to know that, though.

Logan was instead focused on Patton. He was still fiddling with one of his hoodie strings with one hand, while the other was writing. And now he was bouncing his leg up and down. Two signs of nervousness. And although Logan continually told himself that this issue wasn’t his to deal with, he couldn’t stop himself from thinking about it. Thoughts like that kept going through his head.

_Patton is upset, but if he really needs to tell someone, he can tell Roman. But Roman might be the issue…_

And it just kept repeating, going around in a circle like that. Logan was very hung up on this situation, for some inexplicable reason. No matter what he did, he couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Again, this reminded him of his situation with Virgil years ago. The fact that Virgil was completely alone and being consistently bullied by his old friends, Dee and Remus, had made Logan curious of the situation, and against his instincts, he decided to speak to Virgil, and soon became good friends with him, inviting him into his and Roman’s little group.

Those feelings were back again. The worry and concern… but now they seemed even stronger. Logan had good intuition, he knew. And he could sense something was wrong. He didn’t know what it was. He didn’t know, so he couldn’t help.

His thoughts were interrupted by the bell ringing. Had he really been that deep in thought that the entire class had just passed by?

Patton was relieved to hear the bell. The school day was almost over and he was sure he could make it through the rest of the day. He gathered his things in quite a hurry, wanting to just get through today as quickly as possible.

“I’ll see ya later, Logan,” He said goodbye, and then without even waiting for a response, he turned and walked out of the room.

Logan watched him leave, his suspicions even stronger than before.

\------

As Patton walked through the hallway, he drank some of the half-full water bottle he had. He just wanted to wash that awful feeling out of his system.

He stopped by the bathroom on his way to class, pacing around while drinking his water. Patton felt like he was on the verge of throwing up, and just in case that did happen, he didn’t want to be in the hallways when it did. He just needed to calm down.

However, Patton wouldn’t get the chance due to the person who had just walked into the bathroom.

Dee smirked upon seeing Patton pace around like that. Dee was usually able to sneak up on people, and now was no exception. He went unnoticed by the nervous wreck in front of him.

He was quite surprised to see Patton like this. For as long as Dee could remember, Patton had always been a very… bubbly person. It was always strange to him, even as a child. They had known each other since about third grade or so, but Dee decided to cut off their “friendship” when Patton began to associate with other, less interesting people. Normal, boring, new friends. Whenever any of these people got bored of Patton, they would leave, but new people would always come to replace them. Patton’s recent finds, Dee had noticed, were Roman, his obnoxious and oblivious boyfriend, Virgil, who Dee had had his fun tormenting a few years ago, and Logan. The “smart” one.

Deciding to finally cut off Patton’s frantic pacing, Dee approached him, leaning on the sink and smirking at him, “Well, hello Pat. It’s been a while.”

Patton, thrown out of his stupor, was startled by the sudden appearance of someone, but it startled him even more when he processed who it was.

“Dee! Uh, g-great to see you, uh… hi” Patton stuttered out a response to Dee’s greeting. Out of all the times he could have shown up, why now? This had to be the worst timing. As if he wasn’t already freaking out enough, now Dee was here. It’s not that he didn’t like him or anything, he just wanted and needed to be alone.

“You seem nervous,” Dee said with a raised eyebrow, “Also guilty about something. Why don’t you tell me what it is?” He offered a smile, but seemed predatory, and had a fake innocence to it. He was planning _something_.

Honestly, Patton wasn’t surprised in the slightest that Dee was able to figure him out so quickly. Patton also didn’t mention the fake smile, because he’s been faking a smile all day, so who is he to judge? Answering Dee’s very correct assumption, Patton admitted it was the truth, “You really do know how to see right through people, huh?” He shrugged, putting on an awkward smile, trying to reassure Dee that he really was fine, “But really, it’s nothing important.”

Without realizing he was doing it, Patton was slightly squeezing the water bottle in his hand, as if it was a stress ball. Another sign he was nervous. And the fact that he had just lied _again_ made him feel even worse.

Dee smirked, looking at Patton from his relaxed position at the sink. Patton hadn’t moved either, choosing to stand like a deer in headlights. All the more evidence he was correct, and so he commented on it, “Don’t lie to me, Patton. I know how you feel about lying,” He said it in a taunting voice, “It’s what made you hate me all those years ago, right?”

His smirk widened only slightly before he flipped his hand somewhat flamboyantly. Brushing off his own question before Patton could respond, he said, “Oh well! If you are so keen on keeping secrets, I’m not one to judge. I’m well aware that you know I particularly enjoy secrets,” He winked, and began walking past Patton to exit the bathroom.

Patton stood in silence for a moment, not really sure how to respond to that. He didn’t want to lie, he never did… but he really couldn’t handle telling the truth. He didn’t even bother trying to say something back to Dee, because that horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach was resurging.

He put one hand over his mouth and rushed to a trash bin. It was quite a sad sight. All of this lying was making him sick to his stomach, and he couldn’t handle it anymore.

After a few seconds, he got himself to stop. He took a sip of his water, trying to wash away the feeling once again.

Dee peeked his head back around the corner, getting in the final word, one last thing to get under Patton’s skin before he left, “Maybe you should go to the nurse, Patton,” he started with a tone that suggested he was actually concerned, but it quickly shifted to something a bit more maniacal, “Then maybe you can go home and avoid whatever it is that’s making you feel so obviously guilty.”

Smiling once more, Dee turned and left the bathroom for good.

Patton stood still again, processing those words. He wasn’t sure if that sick feeling was going away or not, but Dee’s words certainly didn’t sit well with him. When he was sure Dee was gone, he sat up on the sink and continued to drink his water.

It was true he felt guilty. He shouldn’t have lied to Logan, or even Dee, because sooner or later they would find out how he was feeling anyway. Usually people could figure him out quickly, because Patton was always open. He always shared his happiness, his joy… people knew how he felt, because he told them. So he wondered why he forced himself to keep everything from Logan. In the end, he was sure Logan would figure it out on his own anyway.

Patton could feel some tears forming in his eyes as he thought through everything. He quickly wiped them away and took a couple more sips of water. He took some deep breaths, trying to calm down before he gathered the courage to leave the bathroom. It took him a few minutes, but eventually he was on his way to his next class. Thankfully it was close, as the passing period was almost over. At least he got the issue out of his system.

\------

As much as Logan loved calculus (which he really, truly did), he couldn’t focus on anything his teacher was saying. He was completely distracted, and when his mind is focused on a problem, it was nearly impossible to hold his attention for long before he went right back to thinking about it.

It was _so_ uncommon for Patton to act like that, for him to hide his feelings. Logan could never really understand why he was so open with his emotions, but now that he was willingly hiding them, and clearly felt guilty at doing so… It scared Logan. It was way too much of a sudden shift. People _don’t_ change core aspects of their personality so quickly like that.

Patton’s smiles were brighter than the sun, his laughter was always bubbly and filled to the brim with joy, and his anger (on the rare occasions Logan had seen it) was like a flame, calm and quiet and first and growing to engulf everything around it. His emotions seemed like they were almost _contagious_.

And Logan had never seen him sad, or upset, or look so guilty, _ever_. This was bigger than he had originally thought, and their conversation at the beginning of last class had proved beyond a doubt that something was seriously wrong.

He wanted to help, but his complete emotional ineptness prevented him from even knowing where to start. He didn’t want Patton to be upset, but he also didn’t want to push him too much.

There was a fine line between the two.

Across the school, Patton was also lost in his own mind. He had made it to his class a little bit late, and had apologized for his tardiness, sitting down in his seat. He didn’t pay attention to the teacher for the rest of the class. He just couldn’t.

For a while he considered actually going to the nurse, but eventually decided against it. He knows he shouldn’t let Dee’s words get to him.

_A little too late for that…_

He really couldn’t help it! Everything was rushing through his mind a little too fast, and he couldn’t get it to stop. He tried to focus on the teacher for a while before giving up. He just wanted to prove that he could make it through the rest of the school day. He just needed to believe that he was okay. He just needed to make it through.

It wouldn’t be long until he would finally get to go home. At least when he was there he could handle his feelings in relative solitude.

And the bell finally rang, and both Patton and Logan rushed to get out of their classrooms.

Logan walked through the crowds in the hallways, making his way to his locker and grabbing his items before heading outside. He walked through the parking lot and made his way to his old hand-me-down car he had received last year. He sat in the front seat for a while, simultaneously waiting for Virgil, waiting for the parking lot traffic of students rushing to get home to clear, and trying to get his own mind to be clear for once as well.

That was a hopeless battle.

He’d said it so many times internally today, so instead he mumbled it quietly to himself this time, his eyes closed, “ _Roman_ is Patton’s boyfriend. He can handle this.” He emphasized Roman’s name. Either way, Logan knew he wasn’t going to stop worrying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter two is up and now we're getting to the root of the problem here.  
> Hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

Virgil walked past the auditorium on his way out of the school. He usually got a ride home from Logan, but he wanted to make a quick stop. He knew that usually Patton stayed after school to see Roman practice, and he peeked his head in to see them before leaving.

Patton was walking past the row of chairs, down toward the stage, and Roman ran up to meet him, greeting him with a kiss on the cheek, “Hey Pat.”

“Hey,” Patton responded, greeting Roman with his own small smile. Usually Patton showed up here at the auditorium after school to help Roman rehearse his lines, to be a supportive boyfriend for the beginning of musical season. Of course, before he joined in next semester in the orchestra for musical. For right now Roman just wanted him around.

Patton’s next words were interrupted when he heard Virgil shout from the door, “Hey, make sure those two lovebirds don’t do anything too weird in here!” Patton glanced back at one of the crew members who were milling about after she had laughed at Virgil’s comment. She gave a thumbs up and a smile to Virgil, and before getting back to work, she looked down at Patton and Roman from up on the stage, shaking her head and rolling her eyes with a smile on her face.

Roman chuckled as Patton blushed slightly. Roman really didn’t mind comments like that, and he was quite used to Virgil’s teasing anyway. Besides, he would even say things like that on occasion. He found it quite funny when Patton was flustered.

Now, suddenly, he was thinking back to what Logan said earlier, about how Patton seemed quiet. Roman decided to ask just to make sure, “Hey, you’re feeling okay, right?”

Patton gave a small nod as he took Roman’s script to look through it, “Yeah, I’m good,” He said casually, avoiding eye contact on purpose.

“Oh, okay, good. Just making sure, you seemed to be acting weirder than usual today,” Roman didn’t feel like there was anything wrong with Patton, so he was quick to let the subject pass.

Roman began rehearsing while standing in the audience, in front of Patton. He was getting Patton to read every other character’s lines, but also he was fishing for compliments. He did so by asking things like, “How was that?” or “You think I’m doing great, right?” Patton would usually just respond with some sort of positive comment. He knew his boyfriend’s ego was high enough as it is, but he just wanted to be nice. 

Besides, he knew even the slightest criticism would probably send Roman on a tantrum, being how overly dramatic he is. Then not only would Patton have to deal with it, so would everyone else here. He couldn’t do that to these poor people.

Since Patton was constantly smiling, Roman took that to mean he was okay. It didn’t matter how the smile looked, as long as he had a happy expression, Roman didn’t see anything wrong.

Patton wanted to leave, in all honesty. However, unluckily for him, Roman was his ride home. Patton had a license, but not a car. Eventually, finally, Roman agreed to take a break. Since he was hungry, Roman decided they could stop at 7/11 or something on the way to Patton’s house, where he would finish practicing.

Roman led the way to his car, one arm around Patton’s shoulders as always. He had a pretty nice car, a TTS Roadster. It was a birthday gift. Sometimes he would show it off, just like how he would show off Patton. He liked it when people knew he had such wonderful things in his life.

7/11 wasn’t too far from the school, and when they arrived, Roman bought himself numerous snacks, but Patton said he wasn’t very hungry. He just got water instead, and they headed out to the parking lot. Roman took many pictures, posting them on Snapchat and Instagram. Roman was happy. He thought everything was going well.

While smiling up at his boyfriend, plastering on the fake, slightly guilty smile he’d been wearing way too much recently, Patton was caught off guard by his phone vibrating in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked at the text he had received.

\------

Virgil walked out of the auditorium, smiling at his little comment about Roman and Patton. He walked through the large glass doors that led to the parking lot, and made his way to Logan’s car, slipping into the passenger seat.

He was buckling in as he said, “‘Kay, let’s go, nerd,” and then he looked up and actually  _ saw _ Logan, “Woah, what happened in the last two class periods?”

Logan looked very deep in thought, his hair was slightly disheveled due to him running his hands through it (a kind of nervous tick he had when he was thinking about something deeply), and Logan had only just now noticed that Virgil was here.

Sighing, Logan looked to Virgil and said exactly what he was thinking, “Virgil, I am very concerned for Patton. More than I should be.”

“Well, why are you so concerned?” Virgil was confused by what Logan just said. More than he  _ should _ be? What is that supposed to mean?

“You noticed how quiet he was earlier. How uncomfortable he seemed. You did not say anything at all, but I know you saw it, too.” Logan waited for Virgil’s nod before continuing, “Well, I asked Patton about it, and he told me he was fine. But his expression seemed… guilty. He was fiddling with his hoodie strings and exhibiting typical signs of nervousness, as well. He is upset, Virgil, and I want to help.”

Virgil’s expression shifted from curious to sympathetic while Logan spoke. Logan wasn’t the only one who remembered how he’d helped Virgil eight years ago. If Logan was feeling that much concern again… this must be bad.

“I want to help,” Logan said again, “but I don’t know how if he will not tell me what’s happening.”

The first question Virgil had about all of this caught Logan off guard, “And why is your concern a bad thing?”

“When did I say that?”

“You said you’re more concerned than you should be. Why is it bad that you’re concerned for Pat? A lot of concern is certainly better than none, I’d know.”

“I know that you do,” Logan said, a little frustrated with the questions. He supposed he would just have to tell Virgil his little theory. It  _ was _ the main reason for his concern, after all. He gathered his thoughts before saying, “Well, what I am worried about is that… I believe Roman is the problem… but he could also be the solution?”

Now Virgil was even more confused, “What do you mean by that?”

“I just think Patton would rather tell Roman about his feelings.”

“That isn’t true, he tells us all how he feels, all the time. Patton is the most emotional guy I know,” thinking through what Logan had said, Virgil then asked, “Wait but what do you mean by ‘Roman is the problem’?”

Logan sighed, “Honestly, I have my theories about Patton’s strange behavior. From what I’ve observed… it seems like he is dissatisfied with his relationship.”

Virgil decided to think about that one for a bit. Logan started up the car and they were on their way to Virgil’s home. Conversation had completely stopped after Logan admitted his guess as to what was causing Patton to be upset.

What scared Virgil was that he agreed. Patton did seem much more uncomfortable around Roman recently, but Roman was such a nice guy. Was he hurting Patton? Was he just being annoying? What was happening? He really needed to know, badly, or else his thoughts would get the better of him.

Finally speaking after two minutes of silence, Virgil expressed his concerns to Logan in a very short sentence, “I think… you’re right.”

Logan glanced away from the road for a second to look at Virgil. He looked scared. Logan knew what he was thinking, and he had to stop him from worrying too much. He turned back to the road while he explained, “Patton is a very smart person. If Roman was abusive, Patton would leave immediately, I have no doubt about that. What I believe is happening is that Patton may just be… falling out of love, per se.”

Virgil nodded, taking in a deep, calming breath. Logan was always so level-headed, and Virgil was most certainly not, so obviously, despite the logical assumption Logan had given, Virgil was still worried. He should just ask Patton.

The car pulled onto the side of the road in front of Virgil’s small apartment. Virgil stepped out and gave a quick wave back to Logan before walking through the front door, walking through the house, and throwing his backpack on his bedroom floor. His mom wouldn’t be back from work for a few hours, so he was alone.

He fell down onto his bed and quickly pulled out his phone, sending a quick text to Patton.

_ [hey, so i was talking to logan and he was telling me how you seemed super upset, which i noticed earlier but didnt mention and i just wanna ask now if youre okay.] _

Patton read through the message, and was a little worried that now Virgil was concerned too! So many people had asked him if he was okay today and since he very clearly was  _ not _ okay, it was a little overwhelming. He started typing out a response, but was interrupted by Roman. Patton’s head whipped up to look at him when he started speaking.

“Who’s that?” He asked from across the table, looking down at Patton’s phone and back up at him. It wasn’t unnatural for him to ask Patton who he was talking to. If it was a friend then he wouldn’t care, but if he didn’t know who it was he would typically start asking questions.

“It’s just Virgil, asking how I am,” Patton reassured him. Roman nodded and went back to eating his snacks, only stopping to take random pictures and videos.

Patton went back to typing his response.

_ [Everything’s fine Virge, don’t worry. I think I’m good ( _ _ •^•)] _

_ [you think? pat you know i need more reassurance than that. i dont want you to feel upset, so if you are just tell me. you dont have to keep things from your friends.] _

Virgil became even more concerned from Patton’s response, but he hoped his reassurance would help Patton in feeling more comfortable to confess what the problem was. Virgil just wanted to share the burden, take a little off Patton’s shoulders. He was quite good at that anyway. He knew it wasn’t good to bottle up emotions, as he’d done it for years. All hoped for was for Logan’s theory to not be correct.

Patton stared down at his phone for a moment. He knew Virgil was someone he would have no trouble sharing his feelings with, but now wasn’t a very good time. Especially not when Roman was right here. He knew that as soon as he got started he would probably get way too emotional about the whole problem, and then Roman would start asking questions, and then Patton wouldn’t be able to handle it all at once.

He would, he decided. He would tell his friends. Just not right now.

_ [Do you think I can talk to you about it later?] _

He figured that message was enough to show something was up, and that he would tell him. He would, just later.

Virgil looked down at his phone. He was suspicious, admittedly. He wondered if Patton actually would tell him. He usually kept his word, so Virgil held onto a little hope that a confession would come from Patton eventually.

_ [yeah, no problem, pat. i’m free all day.] _

Patton sighed quietly as he put his phone away. He thought maybe, just maybe, after Roman leaves, Virgil would forget all about it and he could get away with not explaining. One part of him wanted to share what was happening, but another part of him was keeping him silent. It was painful.

It was a little less unnerving now that he finally admitted something was wrong, though. He trusted Virgil because he seemed like the type of person you can discuss this with. It would be much easier rather than Roman, Logan, or Dee.

Virgil pulled up a random youtube video. He could wait for Patton, but it was going to be hard. He just really wanted to help.

\------

While Virgil was anticipating an answer, Logan had no hope of receiving one at all. He sat at his desk, worried. He was really hung up on this, he realized, and it only made him worry even more, just because of how unusual a situation this is.

In his mind, Logan listed every possibility he could think of. Roman was just a bad boyfriend, Patton had become bored with the relationship, it was becoming too stifling for Patton… every single scenario involved Patton’s relationship in one way or another. Logan just couldn’t get the idea of Roman being involved out of his head. It seemed far too obvious, but he still hoped that it wasn’t true.

At the beginning of their relationship, Patton had always been so happy and wonderful, and now he was only one of those things. Happiness didn’t seem to be part of the equation anymore.

Not to mention, if Logan was correct, he’d have to reevaluate  _ everything _ he knows about Roman. He’s caring, and romantic, having flirted with probably everyone in the world until Patton showed up, he’s been Logan’s best friend for years… And he’s a little dramatic… and he can be a little possessive…

This wasn’t a good train of thought.

Logan took a deep breath. He needed to relax. This wasn’t his issue to deal with, it never would be. End. Of. Story.

He sat down at his desk and picked out a book to read. Sherlock, plain and simple, a classic. A nice distraction.

\------

Roman drove Patton back to his house, which was where they were going to finish Roman’s practice. The full-ensemble musical rehearsals wouldn’t begin for a few more weeks, so Roman decided to practice wherever and whenever he could.

As soon as the pair arrived, Patton went upstairs to his room to check on his pet weasel. He had named it George, after the Weasleys (one day he hoped to get another one so he could name it Fred). He took George out of his cage, then went downstairs where Roman was waiting to get started. Roman really didn’t like Patton’s weasel, mostly because of the fact it was always staring at him and trying to climb on him. He tried not to complain most of the time.

Patton sat at the kitchen table, casually petting George as Roman basically performed the whole show. He only stopped to read stage directions, which he acted out in full… for every character. Patton tried to listen to everything Roman was saying. He knew if Roman messed up during a performance, or even rehearsal, he would absolutely hold a grudge on literally everybody for at least a month. 

It took about an hour and a half before the two decided to wrap things up and call it a day. Roman told Patton he was going to stay after school tomorrow longer than he normally would, along with some other actors to practice as a group without the directors for a bit. This meant Patton would need to save his energy so he could walk home tomorrow.

Roman wanted to stay a little while more, so he asked, “So, what now, Pat?” He smiled down at his boyfriend, looking around trying to see if there were board games or anything to do to pass time.

“Oh, uh…” Patton was honestly pretty exhausted. He just wanted Roman to leave, so decided to tell a half-truth. At least it was half true, unlike most of the things he’s had to lie about today. He made the excuse, “Well, my mom’s going to be home soon.”

Roman cringed. That woman was pretty damn terrifying, even if she was only like five feet tall. He nodded and said, “Yeah, I don’t think she’d be too happy knowing I’ve been here for hours, huh?”

A small, relieved sigh escaped Patton as he nodded and said, “Yeah, it’s probably best if you leave. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He walked toward the door with Roman in tow, unlocking it as he spoke.

“Of course you will. See ya then, Pat,” he kissed Patton on the cheek before walking out of the door. He gave a quick wave, and Patton returned one as well before he shut the door.

\------

About an hour later, Virgil was still in his room patiently awaiting a text. He had begun to hit a balloon up in the air while lying down and waiting for it to float down to hit it again. Wow, he was really bored, huh?

When his phone went off, Virgil instantly sat up and grabbed it. His expression instantly shifted to confusion when he saw who it was from. Annoying asshole… he had a lot of people named that in his contacts. The text said… 

_ [Heyyy so Im throwin a massive fucking party after school tomorrow, and youre kinda annoying and really scared most of the time for some reason?? But anyway spread the word. There’s gonna be a shit ton of drinks there, and you can bring whoever, just get people.] _

_ [whos this?] _

After one more message, which was a badly taken selfie of Remus sticking his tongue out and winking at the camera doing a peace sign, Virgil obviously knew who it was. He also felt like puking a little. Ew.

But he also knew that Remus and Roman had a pretty big house, and he assumed they probably held some pretty good parties there. Virgil was still pretty surprised to be invited, as it seemed like this was entirely Remus’ idea, but he thought maybe he should go. It would probably be fun seeing Logan drunk anyway.

_ [yeah, ill be there i guess.] _

He quickly texted Logan about the party, and after a lot of back and forth begging and refusal, Logan decided to surrender.

Meanwhile, Remus was texting literally everybody he knew. He had also screeched until Roman came downstairs to ask what was wrong. Then Remus told him there was a party and to tell people… and then he had to dodge the baseball bat that Roman threw at his head. Cause yes, Roman brought a bat downstairs. He’d heard screeching obviously he thought something might be wrong!

Roman went back upstairs and started texting people about the party. He obviously started with Patton.

_ [Pat! My rat brother has apparently decided we’re having a party after school tomorrow, but I’m not complaining! We’ll have drinks and a fire pit and a bunch of games, and of course you’re cordially invited as my date lol  _ ❤️ _ ] _

Patton was sitting on his couch, gently petting George as he read through the message. Patton was honestly pretty excited to go. It sounded fun! 

He looked down at George as he pet him. Since he was asleep, Patton obviously couldn’t get up because that’s the basic law of pet ownership, but he was good sitting there. He would just let this precious little baby rest.

When he first got the text he almost forgot he was upset. Almost. He continued to pet George as he thought this through. Maybe he was just overthinking it? Maybe everything was good and his relationship with Roman was actually perfectly fine. He sighed and started to scroll through his phone as he absentmindedly pet George. He was a bit of an unofficial support animal for Patton.

Suddenly though, a notification appeared at the top of his screen. A quick glance showed it was a text from Virgil.

_ [hey pat, you wanna tell me whats wrong now? im just worried for you.] _

Virgil had sent that message against his better judgement. He really didn’t want to push Patton too much, but he was just really really worried for him. It had been multiple hours since their last messages.

It took a couple of minutes, but Virgil let out a relieved sigh when he finally got a response.

_ [Thanks Virgil, yeah I’m ready to talk now] _

Patton was scared. He had honestly forgotten that Virgil texted him earlier, and when he got his most recent message, Patton considered not even replying. He really wanted to tell someone, but it was difficult. However, he’d already decided he would. When Virgil sent his next message, Patton committed himself to replying despite the return of the horrible feeling in his stomach.

_ [okay, go ahead pat. ill be here to listen.] _

Taking a deep breath, Patton typed out the truth for once. At least typing it was easier than saying it.

_ [I don’t think I can handle this thing I have with Roman anymore] _

Virgil looked down at his phone in shock. Logan had been right. However, Patton wasn’t done yet. Virgil got another text very quickly.

_ [Every day is just getting worse and worse with him. He makes me feel awful most of the time and my head doesn’t know how to deal with this] _

Patton couldn’t handle it. He felt his heart sink. He wanted to say more, because there was so much more to it, but he was scared. He had finally admitted what he feared to be true, and in doing so, confirmed it to himself. He just proved that what he was feeling was  _ real _ , and it scared him.

But the feeling in his stomach was going away.

Virgil just stared at the message. Roman made him feel awful? Things kept getting worse and worse? From an outside perspective they seemed fine… the fact that horrible things can be covered so easily scared him even more. He may have known Roman for much longer, but Patton was Virgil’s priority at the moment.

_ [if you dont mind me asking, what do you mean? is he hurting you? or are you just not interested in him anymore? is he too different from you, so you don’t feel like you’re compatible or something?] _

Above all else, Virgil was terrified to get Patton’s response. This could literally change everything he’s ever known about Roman.

Patton took another deep breath to make sure he didn’t get super dramatic or start crying, but he typed out his response, quickly, needing to say what he needed to say, foregoing punctuation or correct grammar. It didn’t matter.

_ [it’s not exactly hurting but like one day he’s super sweet and kind and the next he’s insulting me about a bunch of little things] _

George woke up and Patton cradled him, using him for emotional support as he typed another quick message.

_ [he mocks me about almost everything about my appearance and when I try to change something he automatically says he liked it the way it was before] _

Virgil covered his mouth as he read them. At least the terrible, back-of-his-mind fears were gone. He never suspected Roman of beating Patton anyway, there was no way he would. He loved Patton, but clearly he wasn’t the best at showing it in a good way. Virgil’s shock and concern shifted more to anger at Roman. He was a piece of shit.

And then Virgil felt guilty. He thought back to lunch today, how Roman had just casually mentioned how Virgil was going to “weigh as much as Patton soon…” what the actual  _ fuck _ was that supposed to mean? How had Virgil not noticed…?

He snapped out of it, he could feel guilty later. For right now, Patton needed his reassurance. He hastily sent out two responses in quick succession.

_ [pat, i just want you to know youre perfect, okay? logan has told me so, too, before. roman is just dumb, he has absolutely nothing to mock.] _

_ [since youre having so many problems, i think you should break up with him. but i get it, youre gonna be scared to. i know i would be. take your time and make whatever decision you will, but please know that you have me and logan for support.] _

Patton could feel the weight of his problems become a little lighter now that he’s told someone. He smiled a little bit when reading the second text. He was glad he talked to Virgil about this.

He also wanted to tell Virgil that he  _ has _ tried to break up with Roman before, but always seemed to be interrupted, or just stopped due to his own hesitation. He didn’t want to bother Virgil though, he’s talked about it enough.

He felt some tears form in his eyes as he wrote his response, but for probably the first time in a long time, he actually let them fall.

_ [Thanks Virgil, talking about it really helped a lot.] _

While waiting for a response, Virgil contemplated telling Logan this information. He quickly decided against it. Patton trusted him with this and he wasn’t about to go telling his secrets, even if it was to Logan. If Patton wanted Logan to know, he could tell him himself.

Virgil smiled down at the text. Knowing Patton, he was probably becoming super emotional right about now. Virgil lent his support one last time.

_ [of course pat, any time] _

Patton looked down at the text and wiped his eyes. He was still smiling though, and it wasn’t like the fake, small, guilty smiles he’s worn all day. This one was small, but if anyone were there with him, they would be able to tell this one was real.

He stood up and made his way to his room, cradling George as he walked up the stairs. He got ready for bed, texting back and forth with Roman about the party. Not exactly a great end to the night considering his previous conversation, but Patton didn’t care. At least he tried to pretend he didn’t.

It soon got late enough that Patton kept dropping his phone on his face. Through his sleepy haze, he texted Roman that he needed to talk to him face to face tomorrow, and then he said goodnight.

Roman knew what those words meant, he’d seen them before, but he wasn’t worried at all. Not nearly as much as Patton was. Last time he had tried to end it, Roman pulled him right back in. Patton needed to promise himself he wouldn’t fall for any tricks. He eventually fell asleep with George lying across his chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER!  
> Me and the girl who did the roleplay that inspired this story absolutely love Roman. He will most certainly do some bad things, but we do love the canon Roman, as well as our version of Roman from this story. He will have a happy ending, just like everyone else. It will just take a while for him to get there.  
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

Virgil’s sleep was interrupted by a blaring alarm. He groaned, sitting up and glaring at his phone from its strategically placed position across the room so that he would have to get up and turn it off.

When he finally got up, he changed into black ripped skinny jeans, a black sweatshirt and a purple shirt underneath. One of his usual “emo nightmare” outfits as Roman would-

_Roman._

Virgil instantly cringed when he remembered the events of last night. He was now suddenly very worried for how Patton would be today. Would he be even more closed off than he was yesterday? The main thing he was worried about was if Patton would even show up. Or if he’d be around Roman at all, or how terrible lunch would be with the new information in Virgil’s mind.

He growled slightly at even the thought of Roman now. At least Patton might be determined to get out now, now that he’s admitted it to himself and someone else.

Virgil continued to get dressed, thinking he’d maybe wear his usual sweater with the purple patches later, possibly at the party. Great, another place where he’d have to interact with Roman. Fucking wonderful.

He ate a quick breakfast and waited outside for Logan to pick him up. Virgil usually woke up ten minutes before his and Logan’s agreed-upon pick up time. He always had enough time to eat and get dressed, so sleeping was more of a priority than looking decent. Logan, on the other hand, would always give himself a good hour and a half to shower, get dressed into his usual polo shirt and slacks, and eat properly. Always so practical.

When Logan’s car pulled into Virgil’s driveway, he hopped in the passenger seat and took a sip from his thermos that had coffee in it. He needed it to make it through the day, and honestly, it made him more calm than hyper. So it was a pretty important thing for Virgil to have.

During the drive, Virgil struggled to keep up the conversation. The only thing in his mind at the moment were Patton’s issues, and talking about that with anyone else, even Logan, would be an absolutely shitty thing to do. He wouldn’t tell Patton’s secret, no matter what.

Logan could tell something seemed off with Virgil, but then again, after their conversation on the way home yesterday, Logan really couldn’t blame him. The topic still plagued Logan’s mind as well. It seemed like Virgil didn’t want to talk much, so Logan stayed mostly silent until they reached the school and he pulled into the parking lot. 

They were ten minutes early, as they usually were. Logan preferred to get to school early in order to get his books and everything ready, as well as leaving time to talk to Virgil. Their first classes were across from the school, so Logan tried to make time to socialize with him.

Today, however, Virgil just followed Logan to his locker and then said a quick goodbye, making his way to his class. That was strange. Logan shrugged it off and gathered the things he needed for his first class, AP U.S. History.

He didn’t do much once he arrived. Logan sat at his desk and tried to read a book, but he wasn’t really looking at the words. His leg was bouncing up and down, a typical sign of nervousness. He tried to stop.

It was difficult to keep his mind off of the situation with Patton.

Nevertheless, he tried to clear his mind before class began. The bell would ring soon. It was essential that he actually learn and not be distracted so easily.

\------

Every day since he’s had George, Patton had always been awoken by the little paws of his weasel climbing around trying to get off of Patton’s bed. Patton lifted his head from the pillow and smiled at his precious, fluffy baby. He sat up and gently lifted George, cradling him as he brought him over to his cage. Patton always left him there until he got home, just so he wouldn’t escape or get hurt.

Patton looked in his closet and changed into the outfit he had chosen out last night. It was a blue and white striped shirt with black shorts and grey, above-the-knee cat socks, as well as the checkered shoes he had worn yesterday. Cat socks are awesome and you can fight him on that.

He waved goodbye to George as he grabbed his book bag. He thought about what he was going to say to Roman, once he reached his house. His thoughts were consumed with this as he headed down the stairs and through the front door. Roman’s house wasn’t far, so Patton usually walked there to wait before Roman drove them both to school.

As he walked down the sidewalk, he became increasingly more nervous. He tried his best to shake off the nerves as he saw Roman’s house come into view. Taking a deep, steadying breath, Patton knocked on the door.

Roman opened the door almost instantly, which surprised Patton. Normally he had to wait another ten or fifteen minutes, usually being let inside by one of Roman’s parents. It looked like Roman was ready to go, and he greeted Patton with a bright smile, “Hey Pat!”

Patton spoke weakly as Roman moved aside to let him in, “Hey Roman,” he instinctively offered his best fake smile.

“I just need to grab something real quick, then we can go!” Roman gave Patton a kiss on the top of his head, then turned to go up the stairs.

Patton stood by the door, thinking about what he planned to do today. No tricks, he had promised himself last night. He won’t fall for ‘em! He took a deep breath again, trying to calm himself down. This was important, and he was not going to mess it up.

Soon enough, Roman came down the stairs holding a small plastic bag. He handed it to Patton, saying, “Open it,” with a proud smile on his face. Patton could sense this was a trap, but he was curious. He opened it up, revealing an average-sized plushie of Lion from Steven Universe.

Patton was a bit taken aback at first by the sudden gift, and looked up at Roman. He asked, “W-what’s this for?” Patton already knew the answer. Roman was going to play this off as if he didn’t know what Patton had planned to do. When Roman spoke again, Patton knew he had been right.

“Well, can’t I just do something nice for the person that I love?”

“Um...well,” Patton glanced down at the lion, a slightly guilty expression on his face at what he was about to do, but Roman cut him off, “It cost a lot of money, but trust me when I say you’re worth it.”

Patton couldn’t help but blush at that, and he held the fluffy lion a little closer to him. Things like this were exactly how Roman got Patton to stay. He knew it was wrong, but Roman just knew he couldn’t risk losing him.

Patton glanced down at the lion again, gently petting its head with a guilty, but otherwise blank expression. He _knew_ this would happen. Did he do anything to stop it? Absolutely not. He couldn’t just… hurt Roman like this after he gave him a gift. This could go on a little longer, surely. It was fine. Patton was fine.

“Thanks, Roman,” Patton forced out, hoping that would be enough. He just wanted to be enough for once.

Roman beamed, smiling from ear to ear, “Of course!”

Soon they made their way outside and to Roman’s car, and they were on their way to school. Patton acted like nothing was wrong again. They both knew they would be a little late, but not as late as Roman sometimes made them. 

When they reached the building, Roman gave Patton one final kiss on the cheek before letting him leave for his first class: band. Luckily for Patton, everyone was just warming up, so he didn’t miss much. He made his way to his spot, sitting among the percussionists, two other guitarists, and the pianist. Talking to all of these people about music and other random subjects made Patton feel a little better.

While in gym class, Roman thought about Patton. He planned to be extra careful today, just for Patton’s sake. No matter what, he would try to fix whatever the problem had been, cause apparently there was one? Oh well, he could ask later at the party.

As the day progressed, both Logan and Virgil had to keep their minds off of the whole Patton situation, especially during chemistry, which was a class they shared. Once again, Virgil was pretty shit at keeping secrets, but he was really trying his hardest. Something as big as Roman’s mistreatment of Patton was too important to tell anyone.

The day seemed to go by in a blur of schoolwork and a busy mind, but eventually it was lunch. Logan left the men’s locker room after gym, heading to the cafeteria.

As always, Roman was waiting outside of Patton’s class, and when the bell rang, Roman beamed upon seeing Patton carrying the lion. He seemed to really like it! Roman greeted Patton with a kiss on the cheek and began to lead them to the cafeteria. On the way there, Roman wanted to keep Patton in the highest spirits possible, so he complimented Patton on his outfit. It was quite cute, anyway. They also stopped by the vending machine, where Roman bought snacks for the both of them.

Patton took them, and although he wasn’t going to eat them, he smiled up at Roman, a small form of gratitude. Patton put the snacks in his pocket. Maybe he would eat them later.

They entered the cafeteria, and when Logan and Virgil spotted them, they had two very different reactions. Logan was relieved to see a smile on Patton’s face for once, and the only reason he couldn’t tell it was fake was because of the distance between them.

Virgil, on the other hand, knew that it was fake. He didn’t even have to look to know, because he already knew Patton’s true thoughts. Virgil grimaced upon seeing them together.

Patton and Roman approached the table, and Logan greeted them as usual, but Virgil stayed silent. His expression was a mix of sadness, disbelief, and anger, and it was directed at Roman. Virgil just couldn’t believe that Roman would be so judgemental of his own boyfriend. It just didn’t seem right, but Patton despised lying and he would _never_ lie about anything this serious. Virgil had already figured that out last night when the quiet doubts in his mind had taken over, and he quickly dismissed it then, just as he did now. It was true, no matter how unbelievable.

The couple took their seats across from Logan and Virgil, and Roman instantly noticed the bad vibes that Virgil was giving. He glanced around himself before turning back to Virgil and asking, “Uh.. you okay? You look like you just witnessed someone run over a box of puppies… twice… in a truck…”

Patton looked nervously between Roman and Virgil, and silently prayed that Virgil would see that he _really_ didn’t want it to be mentioned. He looked at Virgil with a subtle pleading expression.

Virgil caught Patton’s gaze and redirected his glare to the table, mumbling, “Nothing, just… didn’t have time for coffee this morning. Just annoyed, y’know?”

Logan glanced at Virgil with a raised eyebrow. He did have coffee, though? Logan distinctly remembers him bringing his thermos into the car. When Virgil’s eyes widened slightly at the realization that someone knew his lie, he turned to look at Logan with much the same expression Patton had just given him. Logan instantly understood that he shouldn’t mention it.

Why not, though?

“Ohh...kay then?” Roman said in a questioning tone. He thought Virgil’s angry atmosphere was so thick you could probably cut through it with a butter knife. 

Logan watched all three of them, calculating them. Virgil seemed so tense, Roman could clearly see that, and Logan wondered why. Patton was being very quiet again, probably more so than yesterday. He was also playing with the paws of a stuffed pink lion. Logan had no clue what it was, but he thought it was cute, especially since Patton was playing with it’s paws like that.

Roman avoided eye contact with Virgil and Logan, quickly moving the conversation into a different topic, like he always did. The party, a nice simple topic. He started with that, “So you guys are coming to mine and my brother's party right? As far as I know at least half of the people at school are gonna be there, probably more.”

Even though Roman already knew he was coming, and no one was even looking to see it, Patton gave a small nod while fiddling with the paws on Lion. He was more or less trying to distract himself.

Logan looked up, snapping out of his analysis of the current awkward situation, and nodded to Roman’s question as well. Virgil was quiet.

Roman was feeling _super_ awkward at the moment. He had no idea what was going on, and he knew for sure it wasn’t something he had said because him and Patton literally just got here. Roman glanced down at Patton with a questioning expression, one eyebrow raised.

Patton looked a little guilty, quickly glancing away and back at Roman. He knew what was up, obviously, but he didn’t want to talk about it. He shrugged, trying his best to imitate confusion. Thankfully, Roman seemed to buy it. Patton was just tired of this constant lying. He wanted to leave, but the best he could do was excuse himself and hope things would be better when he got back. He said quietly to no one in particular, “I’m gonna go buy some water,” He gave a small smile to reassure everyone, especially Roman, that he was fine. He took Lion with him as he went.

And that’s when Roman’s day went from bad to terrible. Now he was left here alone with a confused-looking Logan and Virgil who seemed to be trying to murder him with his eyes alone.

And Roman was most certainly right about his assessment of Virgil. The second Patton was gone, Virgil’s glare became unbearably intense, and yet he still remained silent.

Logan watched in confused and uncomfortable silence as Roman became increasingly more uneasy. He just wanted to know what the hell was going on. When Logan didn’t know something, he always felt a strong desire to know, but this was different. These people, Logan’s friends, who were all happy (except for Patton, apparently) yesterday seemed to now be at each other's throats. 

The silence stretched forward, considering the fact that Roman had literally no clue what to do. That was a pretty sensible reaction considering Virgil was glaring at him as if he had done something even worse than pour milk before cereal.

He stayed silent before standing suddenly and pointing behind him in the direction Patton had gone, awkwardly saying, “Uh, ya know what-- I think I’m gonna um… just go with Pat,” He looked back at Logan and Virgil and caught the latter’s glare yet again. Roman responded with an awkward smile and a few mumbled words, “I’ll be right back.”

Virgil glared at Roman’s back on his way out, whereas Logan glanced between the two. The second Roman was out of earshot, Logan turned to Virgil and grabbed his shoulder to get his attention. He asked with a serious tone, “Okay, what is happening? You have been acting strangely all day, and now you are glaring at Roman?”

“You should probably be able to figure it out, Einstein,” Virgil mumbled, crossing his arms.

“No, tell me,” Logan said firmly, “I have been worried to no end about Patton for more than a day now, and suddenly you are acting strangely as well! I am tired of guessing.”

Virgil sighed and hunched over, dropping his anger for a moment to be serious. Logan really needed some reassurance, but he still couldn’t spill Patton’s secret. After a few seconds of deliberation about what to say, he just told the truth, “Look, Patton told me what his issue was. I don’t want to tell you what it is, because he seemed so reluctant even to tell me. I don’t know if he’s comfortable letting more than one person know,” Virgil looked up at Logan from his hunched over position, “I can’t just go telling his secrets.”

It was obvious he was being genuine, and even more obvious that he wasn’t going to budge. Logan couldn’t deny he was curious, but he had to respect what Virgil said, because it was undoubtedly true. He let it go, “Alright, but I am assuming based on your general demeanor that it does have something to do with Roman, and that worries me… but I will respect Patton’s decision not to tell me. Thank you for keeping his secret. I doubt he would enjoy word of it getting out. You can be quite thoughtful at times, Virgil.”

Virgil looked down at the table, turning away from Logan, “Yeah, yeah. Thanks for understanding. I know you’re normally a super curious person, so I’m glad you’re not like… pressuring me to tell you.”

“What? I would never do that. You know that, Virgil. And yes, of course I’m curious about this. Very curious. However, I will not question it any further. If Patton ever wants to tell me, he can.”

Virgil smiled for probably the first time today, looking back to Logan. He was so grateful for Logan’s patience, and now that they had this out of the way, Virgil didn’t have to act like nothing was wrong when he was around Logan anymore.

\------

Roman had eventually found Patton at the vending machine, right where he said he’d be. Patton was just standing there, awkwardly sipping a water bottle. Roman was relieved to see him, since he was something good in his life unlike the daggers that had just been glared into his skull. He was so glad he had gotten out of there while he could, he didn’t know how much more of Virgil’s glaring he could take.

“Okay, promise that you will never leave me alone with those two when Virgil is in a pissy mood,” Roman said as he walked up to Patton, catching him off guard. Patton looked slightly surprised to see him, and a little upset as well, but he nodded to Roman’s previous request.

“His glare was so intense I can still feel his eyes burning into the back of my head from when I left…” Roman said, bringing his hand up to the back of his head and wearing a slightly terrified expression.

Patton allowed Roman to rant about it, mostly just agreeing to whatever he was saying. In all honesty, he was more focused on his fluffy pink lion plush. It was just really cute. Did he feel guilty for accepting it? Yes. Was he going to return it? Absolutely not. Patton obviously feels bad for falling for Roman’s trick, but he just loved the little thing.

His focus on Lion was interrupted when Roman asked, “You agree with me, right?” When Patton looked up to meet his eyes, Roman could tell he had been lost in thought, and asked indignantly, “Wait, have you even been listening?”

Patton blinked up at him and back at the floor before quickly saying, “Uhhh… oh would ya look at the time! We should be getting back now, huh? Oop--”

Roman was clearly annoyed, rolling his eyes. Nevertheless, he followed Patton back to the other two, but he was nervous. If Virgil was still glaring like that when they got back, Roman doesn’t know what he’s going to do. Virgil could honestly be pretty terrifying when he wants to be. Roman ignored the thought and put his arm around Patton’s waist, as per usual.

Logan and Virgil were eating together in silence, and Virgil even continued to eat when Roman and Patton came back. He glared down at the table rather than directing his scalding gaze upward. As much as he hated Roman right now, he was still going to go to the party. All of his friends were going, Patton included, and if he could be there for him, he would. Besides, as much as he hated socializing, events like these were fun with friends. Virgil smiled thinking about it.

That smile instantly dropped, however, when he thought about how Roman really wasn’t a friend right now. He stayed silent.

Patton looked around the table, and was beginning to regret ever speaking about what was happening. Now everyone was acting super weird and it was all his fault. He had tried to distract himself by focusing on the lion in his arms, by playing with its paws and moving its mane around into different styles. He hadn’t said a word since he and Roman returned, and neither had Roman. Neither of them really knew what to say anyway.

Silently eating his snacks, Roman was choosing to avoid looking at Virgil and his menacing gaze. He still had no clue what was even going on with him. In fact, he was pretty sure the whole coffee thing was a lie. Was it something he said? Did? He definitely didn’t want to ask, knowing it would probably make things way worse for him.

The atmosphere around the table was awkwardly silent for a long time. Even the speaking of the other students in the cafeteria seemed to blur in the background of all four of the boys’ minds.

Lunch period was almost over. Logan looked up from his food to see Patton sitting silently, playing with his pink lion with nothing in front of him besides a half-empty water bottle. He pursed his lips and decided to comment on it, “Patton, you should probably be consuming more than water. This time is designated specifically for you to eat, and you are always telling us to be healthy.”

Maybe not speaking would have been a better idea, but Patton was relieved someone finally said something! In his opinion, anything was better than having to sit in silence like they were all at a funeral. He replied, “Oh, I’m not that hungry, I’m fine with just my water,” He gave a small reassuring smile to show he was okay, and then went right back to petting Lion.

Logan looked unsure, he could tell that smile seemed at least a little fake. After some contemplation, he slid a few apple slices across the table toward Patton. The lunch period was almost over, so Logan wouldn’t have enough time to finish them anyway. Patton needed them more, it seemed. Logan offered a small smile when Patton met his gaze. 

He wished that whatever was making Patton feel so terrible could just be fixed immediately. Though he couldn’t really help in the first place if he didn’t know what the exact problem was. So for right now, he settled on helping Patton eat properly. This could be a result of the stress of his current situation, after all, since Logan noticed he hadn’t eaten anything yesterday, either. This was worrying Logan, but he didn’t know how to do much besides offer quiet reassurance. Small steps forward.

When he saw Logan slide the apple slices over, Patton’s eyes widened slightly and he looked a little scared, honestly. He didn’t want to take the apple slices at first, because those were Logan’s and he probably needed them more. His worries were interrupted by the small smile Logan gave, and it made it seem like it was actually okay, so Patton accepted, taking one. He gave Logan a similar smile, small but grateful.

Roman had watched his entire exchange, and he was glad at least someone got Patton to eat something. He was usually very protective of Patton, but Roman really didn’t see any harm in Logan’s gesture. He never really found his friends as a threat to his relationship, like how he saw some other people.

The bell rang, finally ending the awkward silence. When everyone began parting ways, Logan turned to Virgil first and placed a hand on his shoulder, giving him a small, reassuring smile. Virgil seemed grateful and turned to Patton, giving him a hug. Usually Virgil didn’t initiate those, but this was different. When he pulled away, he offered Patton a kind smile.

And then Virgil turned to Roman, and mumbled a quiet and angry, “Goodbye,” before turning and walking out of the cafeteria. For once, Virgil was glad that for the rest of his classes today, he didn’t have any of his friends in them.

Roman looked weirded-out by Virgil’s strange farewell and sudden departure, and he still had no clue what Virgil’s problem was with him. He glanced behind his back at the hallway Virgil had gone down, and lightly tugged Patton’s arm, saying, “Let’s go…” Roman turned back to Logan and gave a quick, “See ya,” to Logan before leading Patton out of the cafeteria. 

As they walked, Roman wrapped his arm around Patton’s waist yet again, looking down lovingly at his boyfriend.


	5. Chapter 5

On their way to Patton’s class, Roman reminded him about how he was going to stay after school for a bit, because he actually took playing a lead role seriously. This meant Patton would have to walk home today so that he could get ready for the party. Roman detailed the plan, “So here’s the plan… you walk home, get yourself ready, I’ll come pick you up and then we both head to the party. Okay?” Patton gave a small nod, agreeing that it was reasonable.

Logan followed what was apparently their norm now, just being behind Patton and Roman at a distance as they went to the exact same location. He stopped by at his locker and made it to English class before Roman and Patton. He was slightly annoyed by that, considering he really didn’t want to interact with Roman again if he could help it.

After Roman was done speaking, he wondered if Virgil was still going to show up to the party. Then again, if he did go, it would be extremely awkward. Patton didn’t seem too worried, because his new Lion plush calmed him down, at least a little bit.

While Logan was sitting at his desk waiting for Patton’s arrival, he thought back to his and Virgil’s conversation from earlier. He still had no clue what Roman had actually done, but Virgil’s expressions and words conveyed that Roman was very clearly doing _something_ wrong. Not to mention it was Patton who had chosen to bring it up to Virgil. That also worried Logan. Patton seemed to love his boyfriend to no end, so any complaint from him would be shocking had Logan not seen his subtly upset demeanor, and more recently, his undeniable negative feelings. These past two days Patton had been very obvious.

When Patton and Roman arrived, they stood outside the door, not quite going in yet. The first thing that caught Logan’s attention was Roman’s hand slung around Patton’s waist. Quickly after noticing that, he saw Patton’s slightly sad and guilty expression as he pet his new pink lion. Logan watched while Roman gave Patton a quick kiss on the cheek and quietly ask Patton something Logan couldn’t hear.

What Roman had asked was, “Do you think you could ask Virgil if he’s showing up tonight? I’m worried he actually hates me for some reason… but you seem to have that friendly vibe so maybe he’ll tell you if you ask?”

Patton awkwardly chuckled and said, “Uh, yeah… he just might. But I’m sure he’ll go.”

Not catching onto the fact that Patton already knew the issue, Roman smiled. He headed off to his class and Patton walked into the room, giving a relieved sigh now that Roman was gone. He sat down in his usual seat, unaware that Logan had seen how upset Patton looked during all of that. 

Patton placed Lion on his desk, and just plopped his face down into its mane. Today was just one of those days where he just couldn’t wait for it to be over. He was tired. Today was a tired day. Lion was fluffy and soft.

Seeing Patton so suddenly plant his face into the fluffy stuffed animal somehow made Logan even more concerned. Sure, it was kind of a cute action, but Patton also just looked completely exhausted. Damn his curiosity, because he still wanted to know exactly what was happening. Instead, Logan turned away from Patton and pulled out his notebook. If Patton ever decided to tell him, he would let it happen. If Patton wanted to talk about literally anything else, or not at all, that would be alright, too.

For right now, and maybe not ever, it wasn’t Logan’s business, as much as he wanted it to be.

Patton didn’t plan on doing _anything_ . Until he was told to take out his notebook or whatever, he would just lay here on the floof. He wished he could just sink into the alternate dimension Steven got to visit when he did this… if only he could just go there instead of being here. Instead, he just listened to the conversations around him, blissfully unaware of Logan’s concerned thoughts. Most of the people around him were talking about the party Roman and his brother were throwing. That was _definitely_ a great thing for Patton to hear right about now.

If things had been that awkward during lunch, he could only imagine how terrible and chaotic it would be if some of them were to get drunk. Lucky for Patton he wasn’t much of a drinker. If any of that entered his system, chances are he would become either a sleepy drunk or a delusional drunk. Neither was great for his current situation.

Soon Patton’s thoughts were interrupted when Mr. Torres entered the room and began class. After about a minute of going over their new vocab unit, he spotted Patton laying face-down into a pink stuffed animal.

“Excuse me, Patton,” Mr. Torres spoke directly to him, “Would you mind paying attention?” Of course he didn’t know anything that was going on, so he was just doing his job. That still didn’t stop Logan from being upset on Patton’s behalf. 

Patton just raised his head from Lion and silently took out his notebook. He scooted Lion to the corner of his desk to make room for his supplies. He grumpily pouted down at them. _Evil books_.

Logan had become relatively close to his main three friends, so he could usually tell what they were thinking based on their expressions. He wasn’t great at it, admittedly, considering his complete emotional ineptness. However, what he already knew about this whole situation told him enough information. Patton looked absolutely defeated. He just wanted to relax, and Logan understood that. Today had been stressful and confusing, even for him. Logan couldn’t begin to imagine how it’s been for Patton.

He turned to Patton, and seeing the movement in his peripheral vision, Patton turned to look at him as well. When he had the other’s attention, Logan offered him a small, sympathetic smile. It was kind of meant to silently say, ‘It’s okay, I get it. Just make it through this and you’ll be okay.’

Patton returned the smile with one that was rather soft, but actually real. He was grateful for the silent reassurance.

He noticed that Logan seemed to be smiling more than usual recently. Whether it was from the persistent awkwardness from earlier or the smiles were actually genuine, Patton enjoyed seeing his friend like that. He turned back to his notebook and picked up one of his sparkly gel pens. He was in a good enough mood to actually use them today, which he hadn’t been doing these past few days.

Unsurprisingly, Logan noticed Patton using the pens. Logan was very observant, and he prided himself on that. Either way, when he noticed the pens, Logan’s somewhat sad smile he had given to Patton for reassurance seconds ago shifted to something a little happier. Logan looked back down at his page and continued writing. However, his mind wandered. That was also unsurprising at this point. 

Patton was actually using his colorful pens again. It was such a normal thing for him to use, so perfect for someone so happy and bubbly. So when Patton had made the switch to black pens a few days ago, it had been quite intriguing. Logan simply thought the pens had run out of ink. When the blank pens came out of Patton’s pencil pouch consistently for a few days, though, Logan knew it was no accident. Now with the whole issue of today finally being revealed (if only slightly), Logan knew that the events were correlated. He just hadn’t been happy enough to use the colorful pens.

But he was using them again now. Maybe he felt better?

Patton wrote down his usual notes, doodling in any empty spots he could find. He was mostly going from page to page drawing his new little Lion plush in every corner, kind of like a flip book. His elbow was resting on top of the plushie as he wrote and doodled.

He glanced at the clock once he was done with writing down the vocab, waiting for the period to end. Patton made sure to keep his notebook open just in case the teacher asked why he wasn’t working even though he was done and there was only a few minutes left anyway. He felt a lot better today than he had recently, which was a bit surprising. 

With the extra time they had left, Logan had nothing to do. He had already finished the grammar and vocab homework. He turned to Patton and decided to talk to him. Most of the people around them were talking anyway, already completed with their work.

“So, are you going to the party today?” The words included more than their surface meaning. Logan wanted to know if Patton was feeling well enough to go to the party, but also that Logan didn’t really expect Patton to be there.

Upon hearing his voice, Patton turned to Logan. He nodded while saying, “Oh. Yeah, Roman really wants me to come since it’s apparently going to be really fun.” Roman had basically begged for Patton to be there, and as soon as he said yes, Roman knew this party was going to be beyond fantastic. He had even told Patton that. Patton ignored his own thoughts for now and decided to ask Logan the same thing, “Are you going?”

After all, Patton was genuinely curious. Logan usually didn’t go to many social events. He just didn’t seem like the type to even want to go. There was that as well as the whole situation from earlier that made Patton curious for Logan’s answer.

“Yes, Virgil was able to convince me,” Logan smiled slightly again, but it was slightly awkward, “I’m assuming Roman is driving you there?” After he said it, he suddenly remembered, “Wait, isn’t he staying after school to practice his part in the musical?”

“He is, but we decided that I could just walk home today to get ready, and then he’ll come over to pick me up,” Patton explained. He really didn’t think his house was too far away, so he didn’t mind either way. Patton would just get dressed there, no big deal. Then again, he really didn’t know what he was supposed to wear to these kinds of things. Roman usually liked to comment on the way he dressed, but he _was_ acting a little nicer today…

While Patton was thinking that over, Logan was just straight-up confused. Why would someone like Roman, probably the most protective person Logan knows, let his boyfriend walk home alone? Usually, Logan tended to be neutral rather than pessimistic, but even he knows that a lot of bad things can happen to people when walking anywhere on their own. He ended up deciding to offer Patton a ride, giving some excuses along with it.

“Oh, that is nonsense. I can give you a ride while I drop off Virgil. If you do not mind, of course. It is rather hot outside today, and perhaps it would be better not to walk, even if it is only about a ten minute journey.”

In all honesty, Logan just wanted to spend more time with Patton. He wasn’t quite ready to admit that to himself yet, though.

Patton thought about it for a moment. Roman probably wouldn’t mind, and Patton did agree that it seemed much nicer than walking. 

“Alright, that sounds like a plan! Thanks, Logan,” Patton smiled to show his gratitude. He would probably just text Roman about it when he got to his next class, just so Roman would know where he was. Patton picked up his lion plush, hugging it as he smiled up at Logan, “Hope you don’t mind an animal in your car. I promise he doesn’t shed!” He giggled at his little joke.

Logan rolled his eyes at the joke, but nevertheless played along, “Of course I do not mind.” Maybe he just did that to make Patton a little happier? So what? 

Suddenly the bell rang, and Logan reached down to grab his books and began to walk out of the class alongside Patton. He gave a quick, “Farewell,” to Patton and the two separated, heading in opposite directions. When far enough away from Patton, Logan smiled, keeping his head down as he did so. 

The rest of the school day seemed like it took forever to end. Logan was mainly focused on Patton’s recent shift in behavior, how he seemed happier. He was using colorful pens and smiling and had accepted Logan’s invitation to give him a ride. Those were good signs that things were getting at least a little bit better.

Virgil, while in his own class, had calmed down slightly. Not looking directly at Roman had certainly helped on that front. 

During these last two class periods, Virgil had a lot of time to think. He had eventually come to the conclusion that Roman was probably just being his usual dumbass self and wasn’t realizing how terrible he was being. Roman was most likely completely ignorant to the feelings of those around him. Self-centered and egotistical, Roman’s biggest flaws. It’s possible that that was happening, but it was also unlikely. Why would Roman make fun of Patton’s appearance? Unless it was a joke, messing around and saying things like, “Wow, did you even _try_ to look decent today?” and things like that. Virgil was used to receiving that kind of teasing from Roman.

As he considered it more, he became increasingly more conflicted. It could just be joking, but Patton was sensitive. Words like that would hurt him, and they already have. Roman could just be ignorant about how he’s acting… or he could be saying these things with malicious intent.

Virgil shook his head slightly to get rid of the thought. Roman would never do things like that intentionally. He knew that. He had known Roman for years, ever since Logan befriended him and introduced him to Roman. At least Roman was a better person than Remus, that much was for sure.

The strange behavior Virgil was exhibiting caused some students to look at him weirdly. Virgil wasn’t paying any attention to his teacher or his students anyway, so it really didn’t matter much.

Patton was sitting in his next class, just trying to relax. On his way here, he had texted Roman his change in plans. Roman seemed to cautiously agree, and he told Patton exactly why he was slightly worried. It was because Virgil was going to be there. In the short discussion (basically one text sent by Patton and three sent by Roman), Roman had explained that he was just a little worried about what Virgil might say behind his back. In the end, he agreed.

He felt like everything was going way too slow. This was Patton’s last cruel hour of school before he would be set free. He was just going to relax for now. Gently petting his lion, he payed at least some attention to his teacher. To put it frankly, he was actually just excited. He couldn’t wait for this class to end.

Soon, however, the final bell rang. Patton gathered his stuff and made his way out of the class. While walking, Patton couldn’t help but notice he was actually smiling a little. Although it was small, it was a start. He always figured maybe, sooner or later, he would be able to go back to how he always used to smile: bright and constant.

As he was on his way out, Patton decided he would stop by the auditorium. It was what he usually did, anyway.

The second Patton stepped through the doors in the back of the auditorium, Roman ran up to him, just like always. When Patton asked about the party, Roman simply bragged about how big and awesome it was going to be. How the whole school was going to be there, how it would be remembered by this group of students forever, and other dramatic things.

Patton interrupted Roman to remind him that he had to meet up with Logan and Virgil soon.

“Ah, yes, of course!” Roman smiled, giving Patton a quick kiss on the cheek before he left, “Remember to dress nice… but not too nice!”

“What do you mean by that?” Patton turned around and asked on his way out.

“You know, like… nice enough to know you dressed nice, but not nice enough to attract attention.”

Patton turned around after giving Roman a quick wave. He brushed off that last part. Surely Roman was just joking about that.

\------

When the bell rang, Logan made his way to his locker, put everything in his backpack, and walked across the school to where Virgil’s locker and the back entrance to the parking lot were. When Logan arrived, Virgil began talking about the party. He seemed more relaxed. That was good.

When they both sat down in Logan’s car, Virgil asked, “Uh… you’re not planning on venting to me again, are you?”

Logan looked confused, “No, why?”

“Well you’re not starting the car. Last time this happened was yesterday and you talked about the whole Patton issue.

“No, we are just waiting for Patton. Roman will be staying after school to work on the musical today, so I offered Patton a ride home. Is that alright?”

Virgil shrugged. It really didn’t bother him too much. As long as he didn’t have to see Roman. He could deal with seeing him after a few drinks tonight at the party, but for right now, absolutely not. 

They both looked up when they saw Patton walk through the glass doors that led to the hallway outside of the auditorium. He had his pink lion sticking its head out of his backpack. Patton glanced around a bit before spotting both boys in Logan’s car, and giving them a quick wave before making his way over.

Patton opened the door and scooted into the backseat, buckling in, “Hey guys, sorry for being a little late,” Patton didn’t want to mention what exactly took so long. Mainly out of fear it would just tick Virgil off again.

“It is fine Patton, we were happy to wait,” Logan turned back to look at him as he gave a reassuring smile. He faced forward again and started up the car, beginning the drive to Patton’s house. He only knew the way because he had to be Roman’s chauffeur back before he had a car.

There was light conversation on the way there. They avoided the topics of Roman and the conversation at lunch, especially. Soon they were there, and Logan and Virgil both said goodbye to Patton as he stepped out of the car. He reached the front door and glanced back at them both before entering. Logan gave him a small wave.

After dropping off Virgil so that he could get ready, Logan returned to his own house. He felt quite exhausted. Today has been stressful, but has gotten significantly better as the day went on. Patton seemed to be okay again.

Logan got changed into something slightly more casual for the party. Only slightly. Really, he just changed into dark black jeans and switched out his blue striped tie for a plain blue one. Once he was done, he went downstairs to grab a granola bar and leave his parents a very detailed note about where he was going. That it was Roman’s house, that there was going to be parent supervision, and that there was only going to be about ten or so people there. Two out of three were blatant lies, but could they ever prove him wrong? 

Soon he was on his way out to his car again, ready to pick up Virgil who had texted him that he was ready to go.

Patton was also getting changed. When he had entered his room, he greeted George and then started to pick out an outfit. He had a lot of ideas, but most of his outfits consisted of blue, white, grey, and black. Patton really tried to rattle his brain about what Roman had even meant. Nice but not too nice… what did that even mean?

He eventually decided on wearing some white, above the knee shorts, a casual blue shirt underneath a blue hoodie with grey sleeves, and, of course, he kept his cat stockings on. He just really liked wearing them.

Once he was done, he sent a quick text to Roman, asking when he would be picked up. Roman told him he would have to wait another fifteen minutes. That didn’t seem too long. Patton decided to just stay here with George for a bit, just so he wouldn’t be lonely.

On his way to pick up Virgil, Logan drove past Patton’s house. It made him think of earlier. He was still very confused about the whole situation. Patton seemed happier, but Virgil, who had apparently heard directly from Patton what the issue was, was now suddenly extremely angry at Roman. Logan just couldn’t make sense of it all. The key information wasn’t his to know, at least not right now.

He pulled up in front of Virgil’s house and sent a quick text to tell him he was waiting outside.

While waiting for Roman, Patton placed Lion in George’s cage. He just wanted to see his reaction. George was pretty terrified at first, but soon saw it was harmless. The scene was just adorable. Patton loved it so much, he took a picture.

Eventually Roman arrived, and Patton ran down the stairs to open the door, ready to go. Roman had been a little late, but luckily Patton had learned to be patient with his boyfriend.

Roman seemed to like Patton’s choice of clothes… but it also made him a bit worried. He told Patton, “I said nice but not too nice.”

“What does that even mean…” Patton mumbled to himself as Roman led him to his car. Thankfully, Roman's house was a quick drive. When they arrived it seemed like a lot of other people were there as well, which was evident by the number of cars lining the roads and surrounding driveways.

Virgil walked outside and hopped into the passenger seat of Logan’s car. He was dressed in his usual black ripped skinny jeans and purple converse. Now he had on his other favorite hoodie, a black one with purple patches. He was the epitome of emo, but none of his friends really cared.

They drove to Roman’s house and ended up parking a little further away. A lot of the space near Roman’s house was already taken up by a variety of cars. Both boys stepped out of the car and spotted Roman and Patton walking toward the front door. Roman’s hand was around Patton’s waist, as usual.

Logan and Virgil caught up with the couple and followed them inside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here we go then!  
> This is the party that is talked about in the summary of the story, so this will kick off all major events that will take place in the future. The party will span five chapters, and it's gonna be one hell of a ride.


	6. (The Party 1/5)

The second the door opened, Patton leaned back at the sudden noise. He had never actually been to one of Roman’s parties before, but Roman was just really insistent this time… and he really hadn’t exaggerated the number of people that were going to be here. Was this how it always was? Patton stayed close to Roman as he led the way through the crowd into the kitchen, where it wasn’t quite as crowded.

Roman had plans to keep Patton in his sight at all times tonight. He knew a lot of the people here made some pretty moronic decisions, and he really didn’t want Patton getting roped up in all of that. It wouldn’t be difficult to drag him into whatever they had planned.

As Logan and Virgil weaved their way through the path the couple had carved through the crowd, they made their way to the entrance of the kitchen. Virgil’s expression shifted to one of slight concern, and he looked up at Logan before asking, “Do we really have to talk to Roman?”

Logan sighed, “Yes, Virgil. I have figured out enough to know that Roman is involved with Patton’s unusual mood. However, Patton still cares about Roman. We both know that Roman is a good person, although somewhat misguided,” Thankfully the loud noises around them muffled their conversation so that neither Patton nor Roman heard. Logan was sure no one was listening anyway.

Virgil hunched over slightly, looking a little defeated. Logan was his greatest weakness, always combating his fears with facts. He was absolutely right about Roman. So Virgil walked up behind Patton and Roman and poked both of them on their shoulders. He smiled, although somewhat forced, upon them turning around to see him.

The poke had startled Patton a little, but when he saw who it was, he gave a small smile, “Hi guys!”

Roman looked back at the two, and he didn’t say anything, but he gave them both a small wave as a greeting. Patton seemed happy to have them both here, and Roman didn’t want to ruin that just because he was awkward about earlier today. Sure, he was protective of him, but he still wanted to see his little puffball happy.

Logan decided to ask, “So Roman, what are you and Remus planning for tonight? Is it just going to be the usual party with drinks and pointless games or will there be more?” Logan’s tone of voice implied he was joking about the pointless aspect of the games. Personally, Logan abhorred party games, but he assumed they could be fun if he was playing with Virgil, Roman, and Patton.

“Remus just told me what he wanted me to know, which did include some party games. I’m not really sure what he has planned though, I was just here to spread the word,” Roman had rolled his eyes at the mention of Remus, but what he said was true. Usually when they hosted a party, Roman would only want the vital details and skip over anything small, just so he could make them seem a bigger deal than they actually were. He clarified, “Then again, my brother is very surprising, so maybe you won’t bore yourself.”

“Well, let’s go see him then,” Virgil said, “I’m already bored. And even though your brother is extremely annoying, he is interesting. I’ll give him that.” Logan nodded to Virgil’s statement. Remus could certainly be… intriguing at times. Usually not in a good way.

Patton didn’t say much as he stood beside Roman. He was just excited to be here and see what happens.

Shrugging at Virgil’s suggestion, Roman said, “Alright then,” since he really didn’t see any harm in it. It would be hard to track him down, but honestly Roman could just listen for the craziest sounding person here. Roman led the way, since he was tall enough and knew at a glance what his brother looked like. Then again they were twins… don’t question Roman’s logic. It wasn’t very long before Roman spotted him, and called him over.

Remus’ face lit up upon seeing his brother, “Roman! And friends. How ya doin’, Virgey? Still wearing makeup upside down, I see.”

Virgil rolled his eyes. Everyone knew by now that Virgil enjoyed putting eyeshadow under his eyes. He just liked to make his own bags under his eyes instead of letting everyone see the real ones. No one here really cared, but people like Remus still made fun of it.

“Orrrr…” Remus brought a finger up to his chin as if he was thinking deeply, “Are you just trying to reflect the inner death and externalize it?” He asked Virgil. He gave a cheerful grin.

“Remus,” Logan intervened, “Literally no one cares about your opinion. We are here to ask about party games?” Logan turned to look at Virgil as if prompting him to ask.

“Oh, lighten up, beanpole,” Remus said, reaching for one of the many cups on the massive kitchen counter and handing it to Logan, “Here.”

Logan looked down into the cup suspiciously, “You didn’t put anything in this, did you?”

“What do you think I am? Crazy?”

Virgil, without hesitation, responded, “Yes.” Did Remus seriously think he was _normal?_

Roman knew his brother enjoyed tricking people a lot, so he understood Logan’s suspicion. A lot of people, Roman especially, really couldn’t trust Remus. He interrupted the interaction, “That’s not the point-- We just wanted to know what you actually had planned for this party, since it was your idea in the first place.”

Patton had stood idly by this entire conversation, so he smiled slightly at Remus, just to be polite. Remus grinned back at him. Upon seeing this, Roman instantly took a step back from his brother, taking Patton with him. No way in hell was he going to let Patton get anywhere near Remus. He would rather trust Patton with a complete stranger.

Sighing, very clearly annoyed, Remus said, “ _Well_ , if you’re so curious, then fine. We got spin the bottle in here in the kitchen,” He gestured toward a group of seven or so people behind the other side of the counter, “Cards against humanity in the living room, seven minutes in heaven in your room, making good use of your closet I hear…” Remus turned to Roman, grinning.

He continued to list things off on his fingers, “There’s some quiet out in the backyard, I guess. No one’s using the pool, but there’s a fire pit! And there’s truth or dare in mom and dad’s room.” The list went on for a while, and every room was being used except for Remus’ room and the bathrooms.

“Oh, well, that seems good I-- wait excuse me?” Roman took a second to process what he had heard. People were in his room. His. Room. He sounded offended, “Why would you let people go in there?! They’re probably looking through all of my stuff!” Roman groaned. He really didn’t want people up there.

Patton looked up at Roman, “Why would that be a problem?”

“Uh… well, you see--” Roman stammered as he tried to say something.

“Are you hiding something?” Patton said playfully. He knew exactly how to mess with him. And usually Patton thought his reactions to things like this were pretty funny.

Roman scoffed and looked away, saying, “I’m just gonna go check up on that fire pit…” He then swiftly got himself out of _that_ mess. So much for keeping Patton in his sight.

Logan let out a small chuckle at Roman’s reaction. At least he was escaping to something that was very worth looking at. Who wouldn’t be concerned about a fire if Remus was the one who presumably lit it?

While this whole thing was happening, Virgil had thought about the games Remus mentioned. He glanced around a bit and turned back to Remus, “Show us to the cards against humanity?”

Remus grinned, “Alright, someone knows how to have fun. I’m the king at that game so get ready to get your asses kicked. Follow, peasants.” He gestured like a proud king as he led the way to the living room.

As Virgil began following, Logan stayed behind for a second to glance down at Patton with a raised eyebrow, silently asking if he wanted to come with or not. In response, he got a small shrug.

To be honest, Patton wanted to see who else was here. He had one friend who he never really got to talk with too much because Roman thought he was weird. Patton was curious to see if he came.

Then it hit him. This was a whole night that Patton could have without Roman breathing down his neck constantly! He was free to do whatever he pleased without any snarky comments from his boyfriend. He turned back to Logan and said, “I’m just gonna go explore, but have fun!” He excused himself. Patton wanted to go search for his friend Emile.

Logan stood in the kitchen alone. He had come here to be with his friends, but he was pretty torn on who to go to. Patton seemed to want to look around a bit, so Logan ended up choosing Virgil. He made his way to the living room, traveling down a path that was very familiar from his frequent visits to Roman’s house as a child. On his way there, he abandoned his cup on a kitchen counter.

Eventually he had pushed past the crowds and entered the living room. Once within hearing distance of the small circle of people playing cards, Logan heard Virgil reading out a black card, “Blank, don’t do this at home.” Logan watched as Virgil looked up to see others handing him their white cards.

Within the circle there were a few boys, a few girls, and only three faces that Logan recognized. Virgil, obviously, as well as Remus and Remy. Logan just wasn’t very social. He ended up sitting down between Virgil and Remy, and when Virgil handed Logan a drink, he accepted it. He trusted Virgil much more than he trusted Remus, so he took a sip.

Punch. Obviously spiked. Logan shrugged and continued sipping the drink periodically throughout the game. 

Patton had been walking around for a good few minutes now. It was pretty difficult for him to find Emile, considering he wasn’t tall enough to see over everyone, and there were just so many people here.

Eventually, he found his friend outside in the front yard. Patton hadn’t really been talking to Emile like he used to, because whenever they interacted recently, it had mostly been a simple hey and they moved on. Roman wasn’t very close with Emile, and since Patton was, he was just a little worried, is all.

However, Patton was just happy to see him now. Their conversation had lasted for about twenty minutes or so before they both decided to go join a game. Patton explained what was going on inside in the different rooms, and they decided on truth or dare. 

\------

After about half an hour, Virgil had given Logan about three drinks. Virgil had also had some for himself. He was pretty used to alcohol, and had a pretty high tolerance for it. Logan, on the other hand, was an extreme lightweight. Logan wasn’t exactly drunk yet, but he was certainly laughing and smiling a lot more. 

Virgil loved seeing this side of his friend, because Logan was just a lot less uptight. He was allowing himself to have fun, which was a very rare thing for Logan to do. Virgil just wanted his friend to relax a bit, smile a little more, and he had achieved that.

Cards against humanity was starting to become pretty boring among the whole group, so Virgil decided to bring Logan upstairs to search for more party games. They passed by a room filled with laughter, and when Virgil peeked inside, he saw Patton, Emile, and about ten other people sitting in a large circle with a random bowl and a hat sitting in the middle.

Glancing back at Logan, Virgil asked, “Wanna go here?”

Logan shrugged, and they walked inside. No one really noticed their entrance right away, but soon a girl announced that they had two more players joining them, and everyone looked up at them from their seated position and smiled, waved, and whatnot. This seemed like a pretty friendly group.

When the announcement of their arrival happened, Patton looked up from his conversation with Emile and grinned upon seeing them. It was one of the first genuine smiles that Logan or Virgil had seen from Patton in a while.

In all honesty, Patton was just excited. He got to play this game, with all of his friends and some new, kind strangers. It was fun! Patton knows for certain Roman wouldn’t want him playing this game, so he was glad to just make the most of it while he could. He smiled at Logan as he sat next to him, and then he looked past Logan to give Virgil the same smile. Patton was just so glad to be here with all of them.

All four of the boys, Logan, Virgil, Patton, and Emile, watched happily as the truths and dares happened before them. Virgil laughed when a girl from his computer arts class had to do jumping jacks while singing the national anthem. The singing was just a bonus, but he’s assuming the jumping jacks were for all the horny straight boys who were also playing. Of which there were about three. 

Patton seemed to be really excited to be playing this game. He had already chosen truths for the only other time it had been his turn, so Emile was urging him to pick dare his next time around. Emile had chosen dare last time as well, and he was feeling dangerous today so he was going to pick it again! It was funny to most of the group to see these two sweet little candy boys try to act like they’re cool and reckless. 

After a few more rounds of nonsense, it was Virgil’s turn. Anyone who wanted to ask the person truth or dare could, but they had to pick out a piece of paper for their victim in order to prevent cheating. Not that anyone here would, anyway. That would just ruin the fun.

Some random guy across the circle asked Virgil, “Truth or dare?”

“Dare,” Virgil said instantly, without hesitation. He had been prepared for his turn.

The guy reached into the hat, which contained the dares that had been previously written down by people around the circle, and pulled out a piece of paper. He read it aloud to Virgil and the rest of the group, “Eat a raw egg.”

Virgil looked slightly disgusted, but he stood up anyway and walked out of the room saying, “I’ll be right back with that egg,” And after about thirty seconds, he was in fact holding an egg and a small paper plate. He might as well keep the carpet clean unless he wants to be murdered by Roman. He bit down into the egg, catching some bits of shell, as well as the yolk onto the plate.

People cheered, but also some were actually disgusted. Patton fake gagged at the sight, just the noise of an egg cracking like that was super gross to him. Emile, on the other hand, couldn’t help but laugh. He just couldn’t believe anyone would actually do that!

Patton just hoped whatever dare he got wouldn’t be nearly as gross as that one.

“If you were dared to drink a glass of pickle juice, would you do it?” Emile asked Patton quietly. He turned to Emile, shocked. 

“Ewww, gross! Please don’t tell me you actually put that in there!” When Emile nodded as a response, both boys started laughing. Patton was enjoying himself so far, but if he had to drink pickle juice he would leave the game immediately.

Now, since they were going around the circle so that everyone got to participate, it was Logan’s turn. One of the girls across from the circle asked, “Truth or dare?”

Logan thought for a moment, but ended up deciding, “Truth.”

“Lame,” Virgil said, poking Logan’s shoulder. He said it with a teasing tone of voice, of course he didn’t actually mean it. Logan just rolled his eyes as a response while the girl pulled a slip of paper out of the bowl for him.

She read aloud to the group, “Describe your first sexual experience.”

Now, Logan was a pretty introverted person, so no one here really knew too much about him. Most of them probably didn’t even know his name, or if he was gay. Either way, he had chosen truth, and so he spoke exactly that. The truth.

“Never had one,” He said as he shrugged.

The girl looked shocked, “What? But you’re like… super tall and thin, and pretty attractive... I don’t buy it.”

Logan just shrugged again, “Well, it’s the truth. Never even kissed anyone.” Logan’s speech was less professional than it usually was. He was using contractions like ‘it’s’ and ‘I’m’. That was a pretty clear indication that he was at least slightly buzzed. Anyone who had ever heard him speak before knew he never did that. And only those closest to him -- basically only Roman and Virgil -- knew they only slipped out whenever he was super stressed out. But on this rare occasion, he was just being less uptight due to the alcohol in his system.

Either way, he _was_ telling the truth.

Patton wasn’t very surprised. Mainly because this whole time he’s known Logan, he just kind of assumed he was asexual, or at the very least, demisexual. 

Emile, on the other hand, was actually pretty surprised. He was about to say something, but Patton hushed him by giving him a look as if to say, ‘You’re one to talk.’

Now that Patton knew he could be getting questions like those if he chose truth, he was starting to get a little bit more worried, because it was now his turn. He looked up as a guy who was in Logan and Patton’s English class asked, “Truth or dare?”

Patton was beginning to have second thoughts about being told to choose dare this time, so Emile nudged him and reminded him it was either this or risk saying something super embarrassing. There was also the chance he could end up drinking pickle juice, though.

“Dare,” Patton ended up saying, waiting patiently for the guy to pick out the slip of paper.

He reached into the dare hat and pulled out a piece of paper. He read it to himself and let out a small laugh. He turned to Patton and said, “Okay, Patton. You gotta act like a dog and get petted by everyone.” He said through small laughs.

Patton giggled lightly at how ridiculous that dare sounded, but at least it wouldn’t be as bad as he thought it might be. He got on his knees (because no way in heck was he going to get on his hands and knees) and began moving around the circle, barking and yipping like a puppy. Patton was just trying to hold back his laughter the whole time. At least it wasn’t super humiliating. Patton was fine with it, and was actually having fun just at the sheer silliness that he was taking part in.

Virgil was dying of laughter when one of the girls across from him grabbed a pencil out of a cup full of pens nearby, throwing it a short distance and saying, “Fetch!” and Patton actually went and got it! At least he was laughing and having fun.

Once Patton made his way to Virgil, he got a light pat on the head, and Logan did the same, smiling and shaking his head at how absurd this was. This whole scenario was just so ridiculously dumb and pointless, but it was humorous nonetheless.

After he was done, Patton sat down in his spot, and took a moment just to let all of those giggles out of his system. Emile was laughing along, and Virgil was still dying nearby. Logan had let out a few chuckles at Patton’s behavior as well. His laughter was just contagious.

Everyone was still trying to calm their giggles and laughter after Patton’s dare. Everyone here knew Roman, and thus knew that Patton usually wasn’t _ever_ seen without his boyfriend by his side. Most people knew that Patton didn’t get to do too many weird and fun things like that due to Roman’s presence, so that little display had been a fun surprise for everyone.

Once everyone had calmed down, Emile said, “You did such a good job! Does puppy want a treat now?” and in return he got a light slap on the arm from Patton.

“Shut up. I hope you get your own stupid dare for that!” He said in a fake indignant tone. He just couldn’t pretend to be angry when this was the happiest he’s been in weeks.

Emile just scoffed and said, “What are the chances?”

Patton and Emile always had a close bond, in a brotherly way. They had known each other for a few years and were always constantly smiling and making jokes with each other whenever they were around one another. Not to mention they shared a lot of interests. Patton had missed being around this close friend of his.

Now that it was Emile’s turn, they got to put his bet on the line. What _were_ the chances? The same girl who asked Patton just a minute ago now asked Emile, “Truth or dare?”

“Dare!” Emile exclaimed. He seemed unafraid of what was going to happen, which could either be a good thing or a really, really bad thing. Nevertheless, he was excited and totally ready for whatever was about to happen. At least that’s what he told himself, anyway.

Patton kept his fingers crossed, hoping Emile would get some sort of dare that would either be hilariously humiliating or just flat out stupid.

When the girl pulled the slip of paper from the hat and read it to herself, she couldn’t help but burst out laughing. She tried to calm herself down, speaking through the laughter as she told Emile, “Okay, okay… you have to wear Beatrice’s bra.”

Beatrice’s face lit up. She was one of the most promiscuous girls in school, but was actually super fun and kind nonetheless. She was also known for her rather large… chest region. She turned around, taking off her bra while her t-shirt was still on, and handed it over to Emile, grinning.

Emile’s face was a bit red due to how completely embarrassing this was. He awkwardly chuckled while trying to stutter out some words, “Um… well, I-- heh, I um… I gotta go--” He slowly stood up, holding the bra strap by two fingers and handing it back to Beatrice.

Patton tugged at his arm a little, trying to get him to sit back down, “That’s no fair, you can’t just chicken out like that!” He whined, pouting up at Emile.

“I can, and I will!” He put his hand up like he was about to karate chop Patton’s hand off of him, which caused Patton to let go and flinch even though Emile didn’t go anywhere near him. He just needed that distraction in order to book it out of the room, sprinting as if his life depended on it.

Patton started laughing and called out, “Emileeee!” but he was already halfway down the stairs.

Logan, Virgil, and basically the entire rest of the room was dying of laughter. Beatrice looked somewhat upset by that, because she was actually the one who wrote the dare. She just thought it would be funny! She said, “Put that one back in! No way it’s going to waste.”

The girl who picked out the dare grinned and dropped it back in, shuffling the papers around with her hand in order to randomize it again. Once the laughter died down again, the person who was sitting next to the spot Emile previously had took their turn.

The game continued in much the same fashion, dumb stupid dares and somewhat invasive truths with the occasional chicken who decided to leave.

Patton was really having a good time, smiling and laughing more than he ever has for quite some time now. Most of the dares and truths he was getting seemed pretty harmless anyway, so he really didn’t have a single problem at all! Besides that, Roman hadn’t shown up to drag him away from this game. He always found it super embarrassing whenever his boyfriend would get him out of any fun he was having. It made it seem like he wasn’t allowed to do anything. Like he was a child or something.

Midway through the game, some things were getting repeated and the truth bowl and dare hat were getting pretty empty, so they took a break for everyone to brainstorm and write some more. By this point, almost everyone besides Patton and Logan were properly drunk. Logan hadn’t had any more than the three he’d had earlier, so he was still a little more relaxed, but was still competent enough to function and act normal. Virgil, on the other hand, was giggly and was essentially in that stage of ‘I’ve been staying up super late and I’m extremely fucking tired but not quite enough, so I’m laughing at everything no matter how dumb it is.’

Suffice it to say, Patton was a little worried about what the new additions to the papers were going to be for the next few rounds, considering how almost everyone was drunk.

And after a few more people, it was Patton’s turn yet again. Beatrice decided to step up and ask this time, “Truth or dare, Pat?” She smiled at him kindly as she asked.

“Dare,” he said simply. He had sort of figured that since a lot of people were drunk, they wouldn’t even remember half of what happened here. Still, drunken teens playing truth or dare? That pretty much was a perfect recipe for disaster. Patton thought maybe after this he could go play a different game, or maybe try to find Emile again.

Beatrice reached into the dare hat, picking up a random piece of paper. She unfolded it and read it while giggling slightly, “Okay… pick one of your best friends and kiss them, passionately. It has to be someone of the gender you’re attracted to.” After she was done reading, Beatrice cringed a little bit. She knew this was a shitty one to give Patton, since his boyfriend was literally in the house, “I can pick another one for you if you… y’know, since Roman’s your boyfriend and all…”

A slight blush had spread across Patton’s cheeks as the dare was read to him. Wow that was embarrassing! He began fiddling with his sleeves while saying, “Yeah, I think it would be better if I chose a different one…” He knew if he did that then it would be stuck on his conscience forever. Besides that, he knew that if Roman found out he even laid his hands on some other dude then that person would be sent to the hospital in an instant, even it was just a stupid dare.

But then there were a couple of boo’s coming from the people who seemed pretty drunk. During the game some people had left, and new people joined. This wasn’t the same kind, carefree group that there was at the start. This was making Patton really nervous, “Uh…” And then some of them even began chanting for him to do it.

A _lot_ of people here knew Roman. They knew how he was. Patton’s guess was that they thought he wouldn’t find out if no one told him. Due to peer pressure, he eventually caved, “Okay, okay fine!” He had a lot of friends here, but the ones he was closest to were Virgil and Logan, so he glanced over at them. Patton felt like he would rather smash his head against a wall.

Logan and Virgil glanced nervously between each other. They had seen Patton look at them. Virgil was pretty uncomfortable with it, as shown by his expression. Logan looked uncomfortable as well, but not for the same reason as Virgil.

Virgil just saw Patton as this precious ball of sunshine, and he really could not handle ever being kissed by him. Even the thought of it just seemed… wrong. Logan, on the other hand, knew that if Patton kissed him, Roman would most assuredly kill him and bury the body where it could never be found again. Roman let a lot of things slide with his friends when it came to Patton. He never seemed to mind when Patton hugged them, or received gifts from them, or even held their hands on occasion. They all understood that Patton was the type of person who enjoyed physical contact.

However, sharing something as intimate as a kiss would definitely land him underground. Logan just hoped Patton would pick someone else to suffer that fate.

Patton could already sense how awkward this would be, and that awful feeling of guilt was starting to stir in his stomach. He felt everyone’s eyes staring at him, waiting for him to make a choice. Some people were even calling out which one he should choose! Virgil was a really good friend of his and he didn’t want to ruin that, and Logan hadn’t even kissed anyone before so he couldn’t ruin that either!

He was starting to feel sick.

“I-- Um…” The fact that he even had to think about this was making it even worse!

He stood up suddenly and said, “I cant!” He put one hand over his mouth to stop himself from nearly throwing up. He very quickly made his way out of the room. Some people were yelling, calling him chicken like all of the other people who decided to leave.

Patton didn’t want to play anymore, not after that. He made his way to the nearest bathroom, locking himself in just so he could have somewhere quiet to try and shake this awful feeling away.


	7. (The Party 2/5)

Virgil and Logan met eyes, and both looked absolutely shocked. Virgil’s mouth hung open, an expression of mild horror on his face as he quietly said, “What the hell…”

Logan looked panicked. Patton had just run out of the room so suddenly… and yet everyone else in here had just shrugged and moved on except for a few -- only about three -- actually decent people who looked mildly concerned. Almost everyone else had just continued the game as if nothing just happened.

Suddenly, due to the shock, Virgil felt completely sober. He had a one track mind right now and only one thing he needed to do, so Virgil stood up and grabbed Logan’s hand, pulling him up as well and dragging him out of the room and into Remus’s room right next door. It was completely empty, so they had some privacy. Once they were alone, Virgil growled in annoyance at the actions of everyone in that room. How they just moved on…

Whatever. It didn’t matter right now. Only Patton mattered. So Virgil turned to Logan and finally said, “I can’t hold it in anymore. I’m going to tell you what Patton told me. This is too important.”

Logan was listening. He wore an expression of slight sadness at what he just saw happen with Patton, but he was ready to finally know what was going on. He wanted to help Patton immediately and knowing this information was the only way he could know how.

“He said that he’s feeling terrible about his relationship, kinda. Roman constantly stifles Patton, keeping him as close as possible and never letting him do anything on his own. He’s extremely jealous and is really controlling. And Roman…” Virgil struggled to say this last part, “He makes fun of Patton’s appearance, sometimes.”

On that last sentence, Logan’s expression shifted slightly, barely noticeable as he felt the shift from confusion to anger. He ignored his emotions for now. They didn’t matter. Logan placed his hands on Virgil’s shoulders, steadying Virgil as well as himself as he breathed deeply, trying to calm down from this recent news. Soon, once he felt he had a level head again, he said, “I’m going to find Patton. To make sure he’s okay.”

Virgil nodded, but as soon as he did they were interrupted when a random girl from the truth or dare room barged in, carrying a cup of some form of alcohol that was spilling over the sides of the cup as she swung around the doorframe, coming to view. She giggled, “There you guys are! I’m pretty sure we’re playing truth or dare, not seven minutes in heaven! Don’t go separating yourselves!” She laughed at her completely moronic joke.

Virgil and Logan both cringed at the implication, and Virgil whispered that he was going to go back to the game to keep them from making jokes about them disappearing together again. Logan nodded and watched him leave before going on a search for Patton. He knew Patton would want to be alone, and since he had just been in the only empty room in the house, he knew Patton had to be in a bathroom somewhere. He found the nearest one, the one right outside of Roman’s parent’s room, and knocked on the door.

\------

Patton was shaking. He was taking deep breaths, trying to calm down by mumbling quietly to himself, “It’s over, it’s done, you didn’t do it, you’re fine…” It took him a while, but it didn’t take as long as yesterday when he was in a similar situation in the school’s bathroom. He even managed to keep himself from throwing up everywhere. Thank goodness for that, right? Well, sorta.

He was still feeling that deep, aching feeling in his stomach. The guilt. There was a small voice saying he shouldn’t have even had to think about that dare, he should have just asked for a different one on the spot.

He leaned against the door and slowly scooted himself down so he ended up sitting on the floor. He ran his hands through his hair as he continued to think.

_ What was I even thinking? If Roman found out then that could have gotten both of them in trouble! He probably would never leave me alone ever-- _

And then there was a knock, and Patton let out a small gasp at the sudden sound.

Once Logan heard the quiet gasp through the door, he knew he found the right place. He explained quickly, not wanting to get Patton even more worried, “It’s just Logan, Patton. Can I come in? I want to know if you’re okay.”

As Patton stood up, Logan could hear the floor creaking as he moved, but other than that, it was silent. Patton was debating whether or not he should open the door. He didn’t want to make it seem like it was a big deal, even if it was. He took one last deep breath to calm his nerves, looking directly at the door.

The silence continued, until suddenly Logan heard a quiet click of the door being unlocked. 

Logan waited before opening the door, just to give Patton a few more seconds of silence before he came in. When Logan peeked his head in, he saw Patton standing in the back of the room with a scared and guilty expression. Logan’s previous anger at learning Roman’s actions, the anger at the people in that room for not even caring… it all faded the instant he saw the sight in front of him. 

“Patton?” He said quietly, his voice filled with more kindness and worry than he’d ever expressed in his entire life, just in that single word. He continued, “Are you… alright?” He asked, looking down at Patton with complete and utter concern.

Patton tried -- he really tried -- to put on his best ‘everything’s okay’ expression before attempting to explain himself, “Yeah, I’m okay. Just got a little panicked back there, I guess” He let out a small, pathetic laugh during his last sentence. As if it was just a small mistake, just a joke. He was pulling at the ends of his sleeves as he spoke. Going into detail was not an option. Patton didn’t need to get even more of his friends worried. They were supposed to be having a good time.

“I just… needed some air away from those drunks is all!” He reassured Logan, trying as best as he could. Patton always seemed to care more about the feelings of the others around him than his own.

Logan’s expression instantly became even more concerned, “Patton, I’m going to be honest with you here… I can see right through you,” He elaborated further, “For the past two days, I have seen you act so different from the way you usually do. Right now, I can tell you’re trying your hardest to hide how you’re feeling. You’re also fiddling with your sleeves, and that’s a usual sign of nervousness.”

When he looked at Patton, he saw his expression. He looked  _ ashamed _ . Logan instantly tried to put on the most kind expression he could, filled with such genuine concern for the boy in front of him, “You can open up to me. We haven’t known each other for long, but I’m your friend, Patton,” He wanted to show Patton that he wasn’t angry at him for withholding information, for hiding. Logan just wanted to help.

Patton  _ was _ ashamed. He should have known he couldn’t hide from Logan, even if he was trying more than ever to make it seem like everything was fine. Patton felt stupid. These past few days have been nothing but awful, filled with nothing but lies. Patton dropped his gaze to the floor, he can’t handle making eye contact with Logan right now. He saw how understanding Logan looked, and Patton wanted to share. It had been hard enough to tell Virgil about what was going on, but he didn’t know what the outcome would be if he told Logan. 

“W-well that’s the thing,” Patton said quietly, his voice shaking as he spoke, “I-I can’t.”

Logan approached Patton slowly, and knelt down in front of him so that he was closer to eye-level, now just below Patton’s height. He placed his hands on Patton’s shoulders and spoke again, “No, please don’t be ashamed. People bottle up their emotions. You know damn well I do… I don’t blame you, it’s normal for people to do that.”

Then Logan rethought Patton’s last statement, “But also… why can’t you tell me? I don’t know your exact concerns, but from what I can assume…” Logan despised that the most probable answer was that Patton was afraid Logan would hate him for what he wanted to say. He instantly reassured Patton on that, “I could never hate you. You have become one of my most trusted friends. You were the person who was the fastest at ever becoming close to me, and despite my aloofness, you forced your way into my life. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

When Logan took a second to pause and let out a sigh past his constricting lungs, he closed his eyes as he did so. This was so new to him. Being so honest about… how he felt. But Patton needed this right now. So when he opened his eyes and saw Patton’s expression, afraid and almost on the verge of tears, Logan decided to tell him even more. He decided to tell Patton the exact thoughts he’s had in his brain these past two days.

“For the few months that I’ve known you, you were always this fun, bubbly, energetic person. Your smile could light up an entire room and your tears could drown everyone in it. Your emotions are contagious, Patton,” Logan had to struggle for words up to this point, but now that he was just saying exactly what he thought… It was easier, “You are the kindest, most generous, caring person I’ve ever met, and seeing you so sad… so distraught and helpless? Knowing I can’t really do anything to help...” Logan’s mind was acutely aware that his eyes had started to water slightly. He didn’t care. “It hurts.” Logan blinked to get rid of some of the tears that were threatening to spill over, “I want to help so badly, Patton. I would say that you couldn’t even begin to understand, but I have a feeling that would be a lie. You  _ do _ understand how it feels to hurt for someone.”

Patton held his breath as Logan spoke. It was true, he always understood that Logan kept his emotions to himself all the time, so hearing all of this meant a lot more than it would from anyone else. Patton had tried, he really did, to hold back, but as soon as Logan was done speaking was when he couldn’t handle it anymore. Patton wrapped his arms around himself as tears started to roll down his cheeks.

“Y-you’re right,” He said, stuttering between his tears, finally making eye contact with Logan, “You’re always right,” Patton wrapped his arms tighter around himself, trying to stop himself from crying even more, “I’m so sorry I haven’t been honest--” He hiccuped, “-- with any of you.”

This whole time, Patton had tried to make it seem like everything was okay, that things were perfectly fine and there was nothing to worry about. Now it was clear that it had all just become too much.

Without any hesitation, Logan stood and wrapped his arms around Patton. The first hug they shared that Logan had initiated.

There was silence for a while. Logan just let Patton cry into his shoulder, not caring at all that his shirt was getting wet with tears. It didn’t matter. Only Patton mattered right now. Soon, however, he spoke quietly about Patton’s previous words, “I’m not always right. That’s just… completely incorrect. I just want to help you, and you don’t need to feel upset in the slightest. None of this is your fault. Whatever is making you feel this horrible is to blame, not you.”

Logan already knew it was Roman, since Virgil had told him only minutes ago. However, he kept his statement vague for Patton’s sake. Logan didn’t want Patton to know that Virgil had let his secret slip, as that would probably just make all of this even worse. If Patton wanted to trust Logan with the information, he would let him.

Patton felt as though his heart was shattered. He had tried everything just to keep from falling apart. Now all of his walls were collapsing. It would have been hard not to hear the heartbreak in his cries. Everything he has been keeping to himself was now being let go in the form of tears.

And as Patton came to this realization, he held onto Logan as if his life depended on it. Logan was all that Patton had in this moment, and he was so, so grateful for it. Who knows what could have happened if he kept all of this in even just a little bit longer?

It took quite some time, but soon Patton’s cries, muffled from all other ears besides Logan’s due to the loud partying outside of the quiet bathroom, turned to quiet sniffles and little hiccups. He had finally calmed down enough to speak through his stuttering voice, but as he did, he kept hugging Logan to hide his face.

“I-I can’t do this anymore. Everyday it j-just gets worse and worse and I don’t kn-know what to do… It’s Roman,” Patton had to pause after that. He was admitting to Logan, the boy who’s only friend for years was Roman, that Roman was doing all of this. Eventually he gathered the courage to continue. Logan said he would never hate him. So Patton elaborated, “H-he constantly controls what I d-do and it’s a constant back and f-forth between his nice days and his mean days… I can feel his words tearing me apart,” He sniffled, holding onto Logan a little bit tighter as his voice dropped even quieter, “Even when he’s not here it’s like I’m still trapped with him.”

Logan took a deep breath as he took in the information. He leaned his head into Patton’s shoulder and held him even tighter. Hearing it from Virgil had made him angry, but when it came from Patton it was ten times worse. It just made Logan want to cry.

Once again, Logan offered whatever reassurance he could, “It’s alright, Patton… It’s okay. You’re entitled to feel the way you do, and these concerns really shouldn’t be overlooked,” He spoke softly as he offered his next bit of advice, “Take however long you need to fix your situation with Roman. No matter what decision you make, no one will be upset with you. You just need to take your time and do what’s best for you, despite what anyone -- even Roman -- has to say about it. I’ll make sure of it. I’ll make sure no one ever hurts you. I promise.”

Logan’s voice was quiet, his tone emphasizing the love, concern, and protectiveness he felt. Once again, this was a strange thing for him to do, but he’s managed it once before with Virgil. Only now it was… more complicated. Logan’s feelings were even stronger and even more muddled than before, and now his lifelong best friend was involved as well.

He knew deep down that promises were difficult, nearly impossible to keep. He also knew that he would try as hard as he could to help Patton feel okay again.

Logan’s words soothed Patton, at least a little bit. Sometimes he just felt like he needed to hear that everything was okay from someone other than himself, because at least then he could have some hope that it was true.

The two stayed there for a few more minutes, just holding each other as Patton cried a little bit more. Eventually, Patton stepped back a little and Logan let him go, watching as Patton took off his glasses and wiped his eyes. He also wiped his glasses on his shirt to clean off the tears that had covered the lenses. Once he was done, he looked back up at Logan.

“Thanks Logan,” Patton’s voice was still quiet. His throat hurt from crying so much. Patton was grateful that Logan had been here and let him spill out some of those negative feelings, even if he really didn’t have to. He then said, somehow even quieter, “Sorry for keeping you here.” Patton knew there were plenty of things Logan could be doing besides comforting him. He could be out having fun with Virgil, or smiling instead of being here and listening to Patton cry his eyes out.

The second Patton said sorry, Logan’s eyes widened and he said, “No, don’t apologize. You don’t ever need to apologize for your feelings. I’m more than happy to help you,” Logan reassured him. Thinking a little more, Logan decided to ask kindly, “Would you like to go somewhere else so you can calm down in peace? Your face is still slightly red from crying… I’m sure you don’t want any more attention right now.”

Patton nodded, thinking that was a good idea, “Yes, please.” He knew almost every room was being used so he really didn’t know which place would be the most peaceful. He did feel better after crying all of that pain out, but some peace would be nice.

He turned his gaze back to the floor, but a small smile still remained. Patton didn’t feel nearly as bad as he had before.

Logan returned the small smile almost immediately after seeing it, doing so subconsciously. He suggested, “We could go to Remus’ room, or we could go outside. I think everyone’s moved inside by now.”

Patton thought about it for a moment. He wasn’t really sure which one would be better or worse. It was true Remus’ room really wouldn’t have anyone in there, but… it’s  _ Remus’ _ room. For all they know they could find a dead body. He ended up shrugging and letting Logan decide, “Either is fine, I guess.”

“Alright… let’s go outside then. I think it would be quieter out there,” Logan said as he turned around and opened the door. After he did so, he turned back and, without any hesitation, offered Patton his hand.

Patton looked at Logan for a short moment before accepting his hand with a kind, grateful smile. He followed Logan as he led them downstairs and through the house.

Finally they made their way to the kitchen and through the glass sliding doors that led to the backyard. When Logan slid open the door, the cold fall air hit them and the sound of crickets could be heard. The stars were bright and the fire emitted a low orange glow across the grass, trees, and nearby surroundings. Logan sat down in one of the lawn chairs surrounding the fire pit, leaving a chair open for Patton to sit beside him.

Patton sat down in the available chair, and began to fiddle with his sleeves again while looking at the fire. He appreciated that it was in fact quite peaceful and quiet out here, with the exception of the crickets and muffled voices from inside the house, providing a low hum of background noise. Right now Patton just wanted to relax and not think about anything.

“Would you like to continue to talk about… uh, our previous topic of conversation? Or do you want to talk about something else?” Logan asked, breaking the silence as he turned to look at Patton. He watched as the orange light from the fire danced off of Patton’s golden hair and freckled face, reflecting from his glasses. It was quite a beautiful sight, though Logan didn’t quite admit that to himself.

After Logan had finished speaking, Patton turned to look at him, “Well… I guess it doesn’t matter. Either would be fine.” After all, he had gotten most of his feelings out of his system, so it’s not like it could get any worse. That and the fact that it would be easier to talk now that Logan knew what was going on.

Everyone knew Logan wasn’t the best with emotions, but in this moment, Patton was glad that he was the one who was here.

Logan decided the best course of action would be to avoid the topic of Roman and other issues for right now. Patton did say either was fine, but he assumed Patton just wanted to relax right now. Logan knew he would want that if he were in Patton’s place. So he asked, “Well, how did you feel about that truth or dare game? I thought it was pretty fun.”

“I guess it wasn’t as ‘pointless’ as you thought it was gonna be, huh?” Patton said as he smiled, thinking about Logan’s previous statement as he looked up at the sky. “It was pretty funny to see Emile panic like that, I gotta admit,” He giggled after he said it, “Oh, that was pretty harsh wasn’t it?” But when Patton looked back at Logan to see his reaction to the question, he saw him reaching for some stuff on a glass side table.

Logan shrugged to Patton’s question, but turned to him while holding the stuff he just grabbed, supplies for making s’mores. He held out a graham cracker, a piece of chocolate, and marshmallow (as well as a metal rod to hold it over the fire) to Patton with a questioning expression. Logan really didn’t want one, but he assumed Patton would.

Patton was slightly hesitant to accept. He hadn’t had much to eat today besides those apples at lunch, but a s’more wouldn’t hurt. Patton took the items from Logan, giving him a small, grateful smile and a “Thanks,” before placing the marshmallow on the rod and holding it over the fire.

“Yes, I guess I must admit that I did contradict myself. The game was fun,” He smiled at Patton before turning to look at the marshmallow that was held above the flame, watching as it turned a golden brown color. Logan also commented on Patton’s joke about Emile, “And seeing Emile run off was entertaining. Although, in that situation, I probably would have done the same.”

“His reaction was priceless!” Patton beamed, “If I see him on Monday, I’ll definitely remind him about it.”

Soon, Patton’s marshmallow was just right, and he moved it away from the fire and let it cool down for a moment before placing it on a cracker, followed by the piece of chocolate and another cracker. He turned to look at Logan with a curious expression and a slightly tilted head, “Are you gonna make one?”

“No, I don’t really enjoy sugary snacks too much,” Logan responded nonchalantly.

Patton shrugged and bit down into the s’more, holding his free hand below his chin to make sure he didn’t get crumbs everywhere.

Suddenly Logan realized he had just watched every second of that.  _ Why did he just watch that? _

He shook his head to ignore the thought, glancing away from Patton for a second before deciding to change the topic. This was an important question to ask anyway, so might as well get it out the way. Logan looked back up at Patton before asking quietly, “What do you think you’re going to do about Roman?”

Patton went quiet for a few seconds. He really didn’t want to answer at first, but quickly decided he trusted Logan enough to talk about it. Patton knew he needed to talk about it eventually. It’s not like he could avoid it forever. So he turned to look at Logan before mumbling, “I’m not… really sure yet.”

Believe him, he really wanted to leave. Patton has tried many times before, but every time he did attempt it, Roman would somehow manage to get under his skin and stop him.

“There isn’t really much I can do,” He kept his gaze focused on the orange light bouncing off of the ground as he spoke this time. He just really couldn’t seem to look Logan in the eyes as he said that.

Logan let out a small, sad sigh before he reassured Patton for another time this night. He wasn’t complaining, he would gladly help for as long as he was able to, but… this was just so far out of his comfort zone. Either way, he thought about his words carefully before saying, “There’s always something you can do. If you aren’t content with a relationship, you need to end it.” 

He looked into Patton’s eyes, trying to convey his seriousness as he continued, “However, you don’t need to rush. Take as much time as you need, and build the courage. Roman… from the information I know, he’s not at all physically abusive, and that’s good, but he is still not good for you. You’re suffering. Roman can be rude, abrasive, and egotistical without completely realizing what he’s doing, and even though that is just how he is, that doesn’t mean you should put up with it. Take your time to learn the best course of action for you.”

“It isn’t as easy as everyone makes it sound…” Patton murmured, a slightly disappointed and sad expression on his face. He was scared, terrified of what might happen if he did break up with Roman. It was clear Roman knew how to get his way, and it was even more evident that he was a complete drama queen when things didn’t go his way most of the time. Patton just hoped that someday he would have the strength to walk out of this relationship, but right now… he just didn’t. He spoke quietly, “It’s never easy and I don’t really think it ever will be.”

Logan looked down at Patton with overwhelming sympathy, “Of course. I never expected it to be easy,” He offered Patton a kind smile.

The silence overtook them again as both turned to look at the fire. Logan was thinking about what he should say next, how he could possibly explain his thought process.

“I’ve never been in a relationship,” He started, “You already know from the truth or dare game that I’ve never kissed anyone… or gone further. Well, I have never dated anyone either. Not even the basic first steps. I am… inexperienced in that field.”

Patton was now looking at Logan, listening to what he was saying with a curious expression. This was a sudden change in conversation. Still, Logan didn’t turn to look at Patton as he spoke.

“So, I can’t really give you perfect advice,” Logan brought it back to their previous topic, “I don’t think I even have any advice that sounds remotely beneficial, at least to me. Patton, I may not know what it feels like to fall in love, or fall out of love, so I don’t quite understand exactly everything you’ve been through during this, but… I will support you as best as I can.”

As Logan spoke, he had kept his eyes focused on the orange flames dancing in the fire pit in front of him. They were a nice distraction from what he was actually saying. Logan never liked admitting the truth about the emotions he felt, nor such intimate things as what he just said. And even if he wasn’t doing so directly, it’s obvious that his tone of voice conveyed how much he cared for Patton. Not looking directly at Patton had helped Logan open up.

Patton took a second to process all of that. If he was being honest, Logan was probably the last person he’d expect to be here right now talking to him about this. Everything he had just said was true, he had zero experience with anything Patton was going through. Most people would probably say he’d have better chances talking to literally anyone else about this. But to Patton it didn’t matter.

Logan had actually been kind enough to listen to him and show as much support as he can. He was also being completely honest with Patton, and after everything he’s lied about recently… well it was more than he could ask for, really.

There was a moment of quiet before Patton leaned over and gave Logan a hug, quietly stating his gratitude, “Thanks Logan…” He pulled away slightly, but kept his arms around Logan as he looked up at him with a kind, grateful smile. It had probably been really difficult for Logan to say all of that, so the least Patton could do was appreciate him for it.

Even just the few seconds of physical contact had made Logan hold his breath and sit up straighter. He still wasn’t quite used to such sudden displays of affection, but when Patton pulled away and thanked him, Logan ignored his awkwardness for a moment to respond, “Of course, Patton.”

Patton let go after a few more seconds, remembering Logan wasn’t the type who enjoyed other people just giving him random hugs. He moved his legs up onto the chair, hugging his knees and wearing a smile as he watched the fire and listened to the noises around him. The fire was crackling, crickets chirping, and the loud music from inside was muffled from the walls. The noises were calming, and provided such a huge contrast from the stressful situation they had been in when they were still inside.

He hugged his knees a little closer to his chest when he realized he would soon have to go back to Roman. Constantly following him around, not letting Patton do anything he wanted… Then again, he really couldn’t complain. Patton was happy that this quiet moment got to happen during all of this chaos.

And suddenly the quiet ended when a voice was heard from behind them both, “Oh, hello Pat, Logan,” Dee grinned as he approached them. The second the voice was heard, Logan whipped his head around to look at him. Great, wonderful,  _ this _ piece of shit.

Patton didn’t even have to turn around to know who the voice belonged to, but he turned to give Dee a polite smile. He always tried to be polite when it came to Dee. He greeted him, saying, “Hey Dee,”

It was well-known that most people didn’t like Dee, and honestly Patton wasn’t very fond of him either, but he thought he might as well be nice enough to say hello.

Dee returned Patton’s polite smile as he sat down next to Logan, leaning against the armrest attached to the lawn chair he now occupied. His smirk showed that he knew something was going on, but he kept a nonchalant expression and tone as he asked, “So, what are you two doing out here alone? The party’s inside, you know.”

Logan rolled his eyes and decided to give Dee a short, blunt, yet honest answer, “We’re just talking,” After all, Logan knew that if he said a lie, Dee would be able to pick up on it immediately. He was the type of person who gossiped about everything and anything. Logan just hoped he would accept the truth and not go spreading any nonsensical rumors.

“Besides, we could ask you the same thing,” Patton said, but he asked with genuine curiosity when he said, “So if you don’t mind me asking, what  _ are _ you doing out here?” If Dee was wondering what they were doing out here, then why was he even out here? Honestly Patton had no idea he was even at the party at all. He was friends with Remus, so he kind of should have expected it.

Dee immediately gave an answer, “Well, I just saw you two through the window, and wondered what was going on…” Dee’s tone shifted from false kindness to false innocence as he said, “You know, since Roman’s been looking for you. He’s been making a fuss about it for the past ten minutes!” He seemed glad to cause some chaos with his last statement.

The second those words left Dee’s mouth, Patton could feel the nervous panic entering his system. Ten minutes may not seem like much, but Roman was always so overdramatic that it would seem like a bigger deal to him. Patton wanted desperately to make him wait, make him irritated, just so he could have a few more seconds of peace here outside… but he knew that wasn’t a good idea for anyone, especially himself.

He stood up, trying to hide his nervousness as he stuttered out, “I-I should be going now then,” Patton looked back at Logan, “Thanks again, I’ll probably see you later…” And then he turned to Dee. Patton knew it would be rude to leave without saying goodbye to him, so he smiled slightly (because that smirk was giving him the vibe that Dee really didn’t deserve a real smile) and said, “Bye.”

And then Patton turned around and walked through the sliding door, going on his search for Roman.

The second Patton closed the door behind him, Logan turned to Dee and asked accusingly, “Okay, what is your problem?”

“Why, whatever do you mean, Logan?” Dee asked, keeping his tone of false innocence.

Logan let out a frustrated sigh, “You know exactly what I mean. You speak with this tone of voice that makes almost everyone believe exactly what you are saying. You butt your head into every conversation, sucking up gossip like a sponge.”

Dee just shrugged and rolled his eyes, “Alright, alright. I get it, Logan. However, there’s still no need to get angry with me just because I interrupted you and Patton. I know you love him, but that’s no excu--”

“Excuse me?”

Dee’s previous expression and tone of voice, faking being offended by Logan’s questions, instantly broke when Logan interrupted him. Instead, a smile slowly grew across his face as he looked at Logan like he had just figured him out. Dee gave no elaboration as he stood up and sauntered back to the door, leaving Logan to stare at the ground in mild shock and confusion.


	8. (The Party 3/5)

It didn’t take long for Patton to find Roman, but when he finally did spot him, it was very clear that he was pissed off. Roman had been in the living room, and when he made eye contact with Patton, he let out an audible sigh of relief. Roman pulled Patton over to the side of the room. Patton instantly knew that the dramatic outburst was coming…

“Where have you been!? I’ve been looking everywhere for you! I even searched the front yard, Patton!” Roman scolded.

Patton tried to calm him down, “I was just in the backyard with Logan. I’m fine!” He really hoped that he could reassure Roman that he really was in good hands and he shouldn’t worry. He didn’t want Roman to be making such a scene.

“Well you know you could have at least texted me where you were gonna be! Did you even think about that?”

Patton looked down at the floor out of guilt, because Roman  _ was _ at least a little bit right. He should have at least told him where he was. Patton apologized, “Okay, I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”

“Thank you,” Roman said simply, but disbelievingly. It was clear that he suspected Patton would break that promise eventually. Honestly, Roman was pretty mad at Patton for not telling him, but he wondered why Logan wouldn’t mention anything? That kinda ticked him off. Logan and Virgil both know how innocent and vulnerable Patton could be in a place like this, so surely he thought they would know to inform him of these things… 

Patton was glad that there was so much noise around them, from the voices to the music. It concealed their small argument, which Patton was grateful for. And now that Roman had calmed down slightly, he placed his arm around Patton’s waist and led him to a table where some of Roman’s theatre and sports friends were playing beer pong. Patton faked a smile up at Roman, “I’m just going to watch, in case you end up getting too drunk or something.”

“Yeah, that’s a good idea. You stay right here. In case I end up getting drunk and something happens, I’m probably gonna need your help, Pat,” Roman smiled down at him. Honestly, Roman just wanted to make an excuse to keep Patton in his sights at all times. He was nervous he would just disappear again.

_ Even though he had been the one to leave the group in the first place… _

Suddenly though, Roman looked up when he heard Logan say, “Hey, Roman.” Roman was surprised that both Logan and -- a few seconds later -- Virgil appeared so suddenly at the table. Both of the boys stood by the beer pong table, close to Patton but not too close, offering their silent support. He didn’t have to be alone with Roman.

What had happened was, after Dee left Logan alone outside, he sent Virgil a text that Patton was okay, but Roman was pissed he had been gone so long. He also mentioned that Patton told him what the issue was, so Virgil didn’t have to pretend he never mentioned it to Logan. And Virgil, who had been silently freaking out as he unwillingly participated in truth or dare, sighed with so much relief when he had finally received word of what was going on. They both mutually agreed over text to meet up downstairs and stay by Patton, just so he wouldn’t have to be alone with Roman.

Roman gave both of the boys a small wave and said, “Sup?” to them. He was just a little confused as to where the heck these two came from. 

Patton was just so relieved to have both of them here with him. He had no clue how this would go if he was alone with Roman. Patton gave a soft smile and a friendly wave toward the two, even as Roman made sure he stood the closest to Patton.

Since he was here anyway, Virgil decided he might as well play beer pong. Hell, it would probably make him seem less suspicious for just showing up suddenly. He grabbed a ping pong ball and easily tossed it into one of the five cups left in the setup. A few people around cheered, and the guy at the other end of the table took his cup and drank from it, looking a little defeated. Some random dude gave a high five which Virgil reluctantly accepted. 

Patton couldn’t help but lightly chuckle at the sight. It was nice seeing his friends have fun. Even if Patton wasn’t very happy right now, he decided to find the good in the current situation. He wasn’t going to complain about seeing his friends smile.

Roman had miraculously been given only two cups so far, but he didn’t want to go too overboard and black out. As time passed, Roman stopped once he had received four cups. He kept playing, but since he didn’t want to end up in another country after blacking out, he decided to stop drinking the cups that the opponent won, instead handing them to Patton.

As Patton continued to give Roman fake smiles and take small sips from the cups he was handed, Logan watched with concern. He had been able to help earlier, but he still naively wanted to make things better, take away everything that’s making Patton upset. Still, he couldn’t do much when Roman was around. That would just make Patton feel even worse. So Logan kept his complaints internalized, acting as if everything was normal.

He watched Virgil win two more cups before stopping completely. Logan didn’t attempt to play once. He sucked at sports, and that included throwing things even short distances. No one would ever be able to get Logan to play something like that, even when he wasn’t extremely preoccupied and worried, like he was at the moment.

And Roman began to lose a little more often, and he kept handing the cups to Patton. Patton had to keep faking his support of his boyfriend. Finally, _ finally _ Roman decided to take a break out of worry of Patton getting sick, and Patton had now had enough alcohol to be in that stage where he was sober enough to know what was good and what was bad, but tipsy enough to smile and giggle like an idiot at small things. Roman smiled down at Patton when he realized this. He knew that Patton had only had a little bit to drink, because he once accompanied Patton to the dentist and Patton on anesthetics is way more than anyone could ever handle. 

Roman had a small idea, and decided to test it out. He suddenly booped Patton’s nose, saying, “Beep,” as he did so.

Patton giggled and returned the boop, “Beeeep.”

“So what have you two been doing?” Roman asked after gently pulling Patton next to him, keeping his arm around Patton’s waist. He wanted to at least start up a conversation with them.

“Truth or Dare,” Virgil decided to answer, “We were with Patton the whole time, so don’t worry. He wasn’t alone.” After Virgil was done speaking, Logan nodded to his statement. At least it was almost completely true. They both silently knew they were never going to mention Patton’s breakdown.

Roman seemed to approve of the answer, and he looked down at Patton. He seemed to be staring off into space, but when he heard Roman’s voice he looked back at him. Roman quietly, teasingly asked, “Did you have fun?”

It took Patton a few seconds of blank staring before he answered, “...Egg,” and then breaking out in a smile and nodding enthusiastically. And with that, Virgil just suddenly started dying of laughter, while Logan chuckled slightly. Roman was just completely confused by that response, but Patton was happy so he didn’t question it. 

Virgil explained to Roman through his laugher, “For my first dare I had to eat a raw egg… I guess Patton found it pretty disturbing.”

Roman snickered a little bit at the explanation, and looked down at his boyfriend before suddenly getting an idea. He turned to Logan and Virgi, “I’ll be right back--” He just wanted to see if Patton was drunk enough to test out a little trick on. So after a few seconds, Roman was back, now holding an empty cup and handing it to Patton. As he did, he wore a grin on his face and said, “Here ya go.”

Patton looked inside the cup with a disappointed expression, before loudly saying, “There’s nothing in here...YEET!” and tossing it into the crowd.

And Virgil just began dying of laughter all over again, because wow, of course that was what Patton would do in a situation like this. Logan didn’t understand the reference, but laughed anyway at the sudden and unexpected reaction Patton had given.

Even with about a year of dating, Roman had only seen Patton like this a few times. That dentist visit was definitely one of them. Still, he loved when Patton was like this because it was like vines coming to life before your very eyes. It was a strange thing Patton did, but it was very endearing, adorable, and quite funny, at least in Roman’s opinion. Roman gently tugged on Patton’s hand and said, “Come on, I’ll get you some more to drink, okay?”

“No straw please, cause I wanna save the turtles…” Patton mumbled as he was pulled off toward the kitchen. Roman wondered what Patton would act like with a little more alcohol in his system. If he kept this up, Roman’s sides would be aching from laughing so much.

Sharing a quick glance, Logan and Virgil decided it was best to follow them. Once they were all in front of the fridge, Logan decided to speak up first. His eyebrows furrowed in slight suspicion, “Roman, what are you doing?” He tried to sound like he wasn’t worried about what Roman might be planning.

“You’ll see. Trust me, it’s funny,” Roman poured another cup and handed it to Patton, and he started taking small sips, looking down into the cup with a childlike innocence, and looking up at his boyfriend with some genuine smiles. It seemed to be caused only by the alcohol in his bloodstream, though.

“Okay, Patton. If you’re going eighty miles per hour, how long will it take you to drive eighty miles?” Roman grinned as he asked the question.

Patton looked around with a slight pout and furrowed eyebrows as he thought about the question, “Uhhh…” And Roman snickered, ignoring the increasing anger from the two boys behind him. Roman emphasized some words to make it a little easier, “Patton… eighty miles  _ per hour _ .”

The pout on Patton’s face grew a little bit as he still tried to think of the answer. He seemed to be getting upset that he didn’t know, “I-- uh… 10 minutes??”

Logan grimaced, looking down at Virgil. Once glance told them that they both felt as uncomfortable as the other. Logan was trying to hold back his anger. He said simply, in a nearly monotone voice, “Roman, stop making him look foolish,” Logan continued to look at Roman, even as Virgil looked up at him with a slightly panicked expression. He hoped that Logan wouldn’t cause too much of a scene. That wouldn’t help Patton at all.

“Oh, seriously?” Roman looked back at the two of them with a slightly annoyed expression, “Come on, it’s funny!” He smiled down at Patton, silently asking if he was okay. He returned the smile, though it was clearly not through sober thought. He leaned back against the counter slightly.

Logan looked down at Patton, his eyes flickering back up to meet Roman’s, “No, it is not, Roman.”

As Logan was glaring daggers at Roman, Virgil walked over to Patton to support him. Poor guy looked like he had no clue what was even happening anymore, “Hey, Pat,” Virgil said quietly to him, “You okay, buddy?”

Patton looked at Virgil and gave a slightly nod. He smiled and said, “I feel fiineeee.”

Glancing back and forth between Virgil comforting Patton and Logan giving him the death glare, Roman did feel a little guilty. Had he crossed the line? He turned to face Logan before saying, “Alright, fine, whatever, I’ll stop…” Roman walked over to Patton, and Virgil backed away from them before Roman put his arm around Patton, asking in a concerned voice, “You’re okay, right?”

Patton nodded, eyes closed, “Mhmm!” He giggled.

“See, he’s fine,” Roman said, facing Logan and Virgil. His smile dropped a little bit and he asked, “But seriously, not even the slightest bit funny? Really?”

Virgil glared up at him, “No, Roman. It wasn’t.” The tension in the air was palpable, and there was a few seconds of silence. Logan didn’t speak up at all, instead turning around and heading to the living room.

Sighing, Roman looked down at the floor, away from Logan, “Alright then…” He had no clue why his two best friends seemed so pissed at him. This afternoon it was just Virgil but now… Logan seemed even angrier. He let out another sigh, shaking his head slightly. Roman could ignore it for now. He held Patton’s hand and began to lead him away, “I’ll take you upstairs, okay?” Roman knew there were people in every room in the house besides Remus’, so there was really no other place to bring Patton besides his brother’s room.

Patton nodded enthusiastically, saying “Yeee…”

Upon hearing Roman’s words, Logan turned around again. He walked forward so he was side by side with Virgil again, both of them watching Roman and Patton retreat down the hallway and toward the stairs. Logan turned his head and looked down at Virgil with a sad and pissed off expression. Virgil’s expression gave away that he felt much the same as Logan.

“We can’t go after them. That would be too weird…”

Logan closed his eyes and let out a small sigh, trying to let his anger at Roman fade away. He knew Virgil was right, they couldn’t let Roman know something was off, and that meant leaving those two alone sometimes, even against their better judgement. He responded quietly, “I know… Roman would figure out that something’s wrong. I don’t want him to learn that Patton is having second thoughts until Patton breaks it off himself.”

Virgil nodded. They decided to sit down in the living room. They joined back into the cards against humanity game, only so that they could act like everything was normal with them. Neither of them laughed much during the game.

Everyone around them was drunk, laughing, or just completely passed out. It seemed no one really cared much about what was going on, so Virgil spoke to Logan quietly.

“I know Roman’s a good person. We’ve known him for so long, and… I don’t know. I just hate what he’s doing.”

Logan nodded, “I know. I feel the same way.”

\------

Patton nearly slipped as he tried to make it to the bed on his own, but Roman stepped in to help. After face planting into the bed, Patton giggled to himself as he laid there for a second before rolling over to his side.

It was obvious that Patton was pretty out of it. Roman snickered to himself as he sat on the edge of the bed. Roman poked the side of Patton’s head and said, “You’re a robot now.”

The little puffball gasped and said with such awestruck, childlike enthusiasm, “Does this mean I’m a microwave?” Roman brought out his phone to record this. He wanted to show Patton in the morning. He would probably find it funny, or at least Roman thought so.

“Yes, Pat, you’re a microwave and someone is making popcorn,” Roman said. Patton began making small popping noises with his mouth.

Nonsense like this continued for a few minutes, and it kept going until Patton barely even made any sense anymore. Roman had been dying of laughter, and he thought now was probably a good time to head back downstairs. He looked at his boyfriend fondly, and thought back to this morning. He let out a small, lovestruck sigh as he thought about how glad he was that he had given Patton that gift. Roman just couldn’t lose him.

And thinking back on what had happened in the kitchen, Roman did feel a little guilty. He had crossed the line, it seemed. He was sure Patton wouldn’t mind, though. He smiled again at his boyfriend before saying, “I’ll be back for you later -- don’t leave the room, okay?” He pat Patton’s head, who basically just gave a thumbs up as a response.

“Oh, and if Remus comes in, just say you’re--” Roman took for a moment to think, “Say you’re plotting a revenge against spider monkeys.”

Patton gave another thumbs up and a lopsided smile. Wow, he was adorable. Roman smiled again before finally heading downstairs. And upon entering the living room, he saw Logan and Virgil turn to face him from their seated position in the cards against humanity circle.

Both of the boys were a little surprised to see Roman without Patton by his side, so Logan decided to comment on it, “Where’s Patton?” In all honesty, they were both pretty worried. Virgil decided not to speak up, since Logan had already asked.

“Well, captain buzz-kill, he’s upstairs. I told him I would check on him later,” Roman said with crossed arms. He had noticed how quick Logan was to ask, but he brushed it off. He elaborated, “He’s fine -- I think. For someone who’s drunk, I’d say he’s fine. So yeah, he’s fine.” 

Yeah, Roman really wasn’t the best at reassuring people.

Without thinking, Logan let a sarcastic comment slip through, “But isn’t he with you everywhere you go?” Virgil glanced up at Logan nervously after he had said that. He  _ really _ didn’t want Logan to get too angry at Roman. 

Roman looked at Logan with narrowed eyes, almost offended, “Okay, what is your deal, string-bean? He’s  _ my _ boyfriend, I can choose whether it’s okay to leave him alone or not…” After some deliberation, Roman decided to add, “And for your information, no, he’s not with me everywhere.”

Everyone here, even the drunk people who could barely think anymore, knew that statement was complete bullshit.

Logan rolled his eyes, opening his mouth to make a retort, but was cut off when Virgil placed a hand on his shoulder. Logan looked down at Virgil, seeing his concerned and slightly panicked expression, and let out a long breath. Logan knew he needed to calm down. Getting angry at Roman wouldn’t help anyone here, especially not Patton.

“Right. Sorry,” Logan said simply, looking at the floor rather than at Roman.

Roman crossed his arms. Giving himself a moment of thought before saying, “Whatever, it’s fine…” He could sense that Logan wasn’t actually sorry. Roman was an actor after all, and he could spot bad acting a mile away. He decided to ignore it for now, though, “As I said before, Patton should be fine in like an hour or something, so don’t worry about it.”

He didn’t plan on telling them about the video he recorded, not when they seemed so mad at him right now. It was meant for Patton’s eyes only, anyway. Roman wasn’t evil, as these two seemed to think for some reason at this moment. After what Logan said, Roman was reconsidering leaving Patton alone, though. There were a lot of drunks around, and since Patton was clearly tipsy… he wasn’t so sure leaving him alone was the best idea.

The next few minutes were awkwardly quiet between the three, though it didn’t seem like much quiet could be achieved with all of the yelling and music around them. The cards against humanity game continued, though it had been long forgotten by Logan and Virgil.

And Logan felt a strong desire to run up the stairs and go to Patton. He felt a strange sense of protectiveness over him after their exchange from earlier. Patton was in a difficult scenario, and even though Logan wasn’t particularly good with emotions, he was more than willing to help Patton in any way he could. 

But he stayed here. Roman was nearby and Logan didn’t want to make himself look suspicious, for Patton’s sake. Patton didn’t want Roman to know how he was feeling about the relationship, and Logan didn’t want to be the one to let the secret loose.

Roman avoided speaking to the two, thinking it would be best if he didn’t. Sometimes he would glance toward the stairs whenever he saw someone going up, and he even waited to see how long it took them to come back down. He didn’t want to regret his choice of leaving Patton up there alone. After a while more of participating in some of the games, Roman decided to have a couple of drinks to distract himself from worrying so much. Lucky for him, it worked.

Meanwhile, Patton was upstairs messing with a few things in Remus’ room. He didn’t go through his things, he just laid out a blanket on the floor and placed a few pillows. He called it blanket land and Patton loved it.

Distracting themselves with the conversations around them, Logan and Virgil were able to keep their mind off of most things for the time being. It was difficult for both boys to ignore their increasing worry about Patton, however.

Eventually, Logan noticed that Roman had had a lot to drink. Nearly to a point where he wasn’t even very aware of his surroundings anymore. Logan glanced down at Virgil, for his attention, and nodded his head back towards Roman, a questioning look on his face.

Virgil nodded, understanding where Logan’s thoughts were going, “Yeah, go check on him. Roman probably won't even notice you’re gone.”

Logan offered Virgil a grateful smile before standing up and making his way to the staircase. Once up the stairs, he navigated his way through familiar halls that he had been walking through nearly his whole life, finding Remus’s room, and walked in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right, so it’s been a while, huh? 
> 
> A lot has happened that has taken my focus away from this story for a while, though I always knew I would come back to it. This story is more than a passion project, it’s what brought me and my favorite person in the world together, so it will always hold a place in my heart.
> 
> However, school has been difficult. Being in high school has it’s good moments, but AP tests and whatnot certainly aren’t fun. I’ve had a lot of my free time taken up by that.
> 
> Not to mention, I’ve been enjoying whatever free time I could get between classes by spending time with and talking to my co-creator and favorite person in the world.
> 
> With my school year finally being over, I’ll have a lot more free time on my hands, and will be able to continue this story on a regular basis. I hope you all enjoyed this new chapter!


	9. (The Party 4/5)

Upon hearing the door creak open, Patton looked up from his small pile of pillows and blankets and smiled brightly, “Heyyy!” He was unaware of who was even there, but he still greeted them with bright, childlike enthusiasm. Patton was having fun by himself though. His hair was a bit of a mess and his glasses were off, instead lying on the bed nearby, which contributed to him being unable to even see who entered the room.

Also, Patton’s shoes were on his hands. Don’t blame him, he’s drunk. In his mind, this was blanket land and he made the rules. He mumbled a couple of words as he looked down at his shoes on his hands.

Logan had to blink a few times to process what he was seeing in front of him. It was a strange sight, but oddly adorable. Although he was confused, a small smile grew across his face without much thought, “What in the world are you doing, Patton?” He asked lightheartedly.

“I--” Patton was cut off by his own giggling. He laid down on the blanket, staring up at the ceiling, “Blanketsss…” He still had no clue who was even in the room with him, but Patton didn’t really care. Whoever it was, they seemed nice! And they knew his name… suspicious.

“No hands allowed!” Patton turned to his side and pointed at Logan with his still shoe-covered hand, “Get rid of ‘em!”

Logan’s smile grew just a little more as he shook his head. He put his hands in the pockets of his jeans, “This good, Patton?” After an enthusiastic nod from Patton, Logan decided to sit down next to Patton on the soft, dark green blanket covering a large majority of the floor.

Patton squinted up at Logan, mainly due to a lack of glasses combined with the fact he was drunk. He still couldn’t really tell who it was. Still, he wanted to talk about something, so he said, “I’m the-- the sheriff…” He was murmuring most of his words.

“Well, I believe you’ve had one too many drinks…” Logan deliberated this for a second, but decided he might as well humor Patton, “...Sheriff.” Considering Patton was so adamant about the hand thing, Logan was a little concerned as to how Patton would react if Logan didn’t refer to him as his ‘proper title.’ Nevertheless, it was, admittedly, a little bit fun to play along. Logan wasn’t complaining. 

Patton gasped, sitting up to face Logan, “Have not!” He squinted his eyes just a bit more so he could see him a little better, “I think I’m just fine--” And he was interrupted yet again by more giggling from himself. 

Logan couldn’t help but smile a little more at Patton’s giggling. Logan had already realized this during the truth or dare game, but still, Patton’s laughter was just infectious. Patton seemed to be having fun, so Logan rolled his eyes at the nonsense he was about to say, just for Patton’s sake, “You definitely have, though. Did you forget who I am? I’m a friend of the guy behind the bar at the pub, and I saw him hand you those drinks.”

Ugh. The implication was that that was Roman handing him the drinks. Suddenly the happiness Logan was feeling at Patton’s actions was dampened slightly at the reminder of Roman.

Mumbling quietly to himself, Patton had to think things through a little bit. He spoke up as he said, “Riiight… when did you get here?” Patton absentmindedly picked up one of the pillows around them and hugged it to his chest, bringing his knees up to his chest as well as he tried to remember when this person next to him even got here.

“How many… drinks??” Patton’s voice became quieter as he squinted at the floor, his eyebrows furrowed in concentration as he tried to remember.

Okay, now any inkling of Logan’s previous happiness was gone. His expression softened with slight sadness as Patton spoke. This wasn’t fun. Patton legitimately had no clue what was even going on around him.

“I got here about a minute ago. And I think from my counting you had about six drinks? Patton, do you know what’s going on at all? Can you tell who I am, what I am saying?” Logan had long since had his last drink, and his speech was starting to become its normal state of grammatically correct and professional. 

And all that did was further establish the difference between Logan’s sober state and Patton’s drunken rambling. Logan had to take a second to calm down when that thought crossed his mind. Now wasn’t the time for anger at Roman.

Patton nodded slowly, his concentrated expression dissipating as he booped Logan’s cheek, “Pub guy’s friend…” and then Patton booped his own nose, “Sheriff…” Patton didn’t seem to notice how concerned Logan was. He squeezed his pillow again and then mumbled, “My town…”

“It sure is a wonderful little town,” Logan said a little too sadly. It just… felt bad, seeing Patton like this. Logan didn’t really have a word to describe how he was feeling. Bittersweet? He didn’t know. Patton just had no clue what was even happening. The feeling was made worse when Logan thought about how this was all caused by someone who Logan always thought of as his closest friend.

Patton smiled, mostly unaware of what Logan was even saying. He assumed it was a good thing though, cause in blanket town there is no sadness and that’s a law that he totally didn’t just make up right now. He just wants this pub guy’s friend to be happy! He seems really nice. He held up the pillow that had been in his lap, and with a look of concentration directed at the pillow, Patton decided, “Horse,” Yes, this pillow was definitely a horse.

Looking over to Logan, Patton handed the pillow to him, “You can have them -- they’re pretty…” He was talking about the pillow. He pet the pillow with a small, childlike smile.

Logan took the pillow and decided to look down at it instead of at Patton. He stayed pretty silent, even as Patton silently urged him to pet the pillow. As he did so, a small smile did cross his face. There wasn’t much Logan could really do besides just be here for Patton and make sure he wasn’t alone for too long, considering he could barely think. He had to be here because, for once, Roman refused to be.

Although they never were truly apart, were they? Logan remembers how in the bathroom, Patton explained that it felt like he was never free from Roman. They were usually together physically, of course, almost always in the same room. Even when they weren’t together though, it seemed like Roman could never leave the back of Patton’s mind.

When Logan had pet the pillow, Patton beamed. He was glad to see that Logan seemed to be playing along. Logan had noticed the smile, of course. Maybe playing along wasn’t so bad? He wasn’t doing it in public with what was seemingly the intent to embarrass Patton or get some laughs from his antics. Patton seemed happy he was playing along, so Logan would continue to do so. 

Patton decided now was a good time to lay back down, but before doing so, he shifted around and turned his back to Logan. Logan was curious as to what he was doing before Patton laid down, resting his head on Logan’s knee. He stared forward at the wall in front of him with sheer concentration as he thought aloud, “Where’s my penguins…”

Logan was quite used to comforting Virgil when he got panic attacks and so… with Patton just laying his head on Logan’s knee so suddenly, Logan, without doing so consciously at all, began to run his hand through Patton’s hair. Virgil usually desired cuddles after panicking, and after the first two or so panic attacks, he was finally able to get Logan to do so just because Logan felt so bad for him. So Logan did this by complete reflex. He tried to think of a good response to the penguin question. He had resigned himself to playing along, since it seemed to make Patton happy. So Logan suggested, “Your penguins are most likely out swimming, searching for food, perhaps. Who knows?” Yeah, playing along wasn’t so bad.

Patton scoffed and said, “That’s unprobable,” he meant to say impossible, “My penguins fly.” Patton really didn’t mind what Logan was doing. It felt nice.

As Logan looked down at Patton to answer him, he realized what he was doing. He panicked slightly and nearly took his hand away, but Patton was smiling with his eyes closed. He was also sticking his tongue out slightly. Logan had to glance away for a second, because -- well, he didn’t really know why he had that reaction. Logan didn't quite understand what he felt. He just knew he liked it, but didn’t know why. 

He ignored the thought for now, instead responding to Patton, “Well, they could be out trying to… no, wait. They are most likely waiting for their babies to hatch. Yes, definitely that. Mating season for penguins is from spring through summer, so babies are coming soon. You will have plenty more penguins soon, Sheriff,” Logan’s default response was, of course, to rant out random facts he happened to know about penguins. He enjoyed biology class his sophomore year, alright?

Patton gasped. He was excited, and he smiled up at Logan as he said, “Babies?! Baboos… bebe…” He grinned as he thought about the idea of penguin babies. More penguins means a bigger army. He giggled as he said, “Population penguins -- pop pop pop…” He began making some popping noises with his mouth.

Logan smiled, and for once, let his mouth run before his brain could catch up, “We haven’t really spent much time together since Roman introduced us. I’m realizing now that you are actually quite charming, Patton,” Logan let out a small laugh at that, considering Patton was just talking about penguins. He wasn’t lying though. He elaborated, “Maybe that is not the right word… adorable?”

Yes, this was too precious to process.

Still, Logan held his breath after saying it. He had no clue why he had even said it in the first place, it might have been stepping over a line? Still, Patton most likely wouldn’t even remember tomorrow at all. Even so, Logan has a suspicion that Patton wouldn’t mind what he said at all.

“Aww, thaaanks!” Patton giggled as he reached up to poke Logan’s cheek, “You’re cute too, pardner!” He was still a sheriff, so he had to keep up the act.

Slightly embarrassed, Logan faced away from Patton at the compliment, trying (and failing) to hold back a small smile as he responded, slightly sarcastically, “Thanks, sheriff…” Logan stayed relatively silent after that, continuing to run his hand through Patton’s hair. Only because Patton seemed to enjoy it.

Patton reached his hand up to do a fake hat tip, pretending as if he had a cowboy hat. The action was followed by a short giggle.

Logan began to lie down onto the blankets, keeping his legs as still as possible since Patton was still resting his head on his knee. Logan continued to run his hand through Patton’s hair as he looked up at the ceiling. A thought crossed his mind. He realized that he had been doing this for a few minutes. It wasn’t weird, was it? Well, he did it for Virgil a lot, but only because he asked to be comforted… he also threatened Logan with a knife if he ever told anyone. Patton never asked him to do this, but he didn’t seem to mind. His hair was soft, too.

His mind continued to run with thoughts like these as his hand went through the motions.

Patton was mumbling quietly to himself, not really knowing what he was saying. He had used up most of his energy this whole time he was here. What with being completely emotionally exhausted from the whole ordeal in the bathroom earlier, and with being completely drunk, his energy was pretty depleted. Though Patton’s mind right now couldn’t really process all of that enough to know why he was so tired.

He was basically just shifting through stages. He went from silly and delusional to questioning everything.

Logan was answering whatever random questions that Patton decided to ask. He knew most of the answers anyway, so why not. Logan didn’t mind the absurdity of the questions at all. The quiet conversation and the comforting softness of Patton’s hair had soothed the anger that has been boiling up inside Logan from almost the very beginning of this party. Being around Roman had been a nightmare earlier. Being around Patton made it better.

“Is water wet…?” Patton asked quietly, the face of concentration back as he looked up at the ceiling again, contemplating the question. He kind of didn’t want to think about it. The question usually confused him. Patton rolled over to his side to face Logan, having moved a little while ago so that they were laying down side by side.

Logan glanced at Patton before looking up at the ceiling again, answering the question, “Well, no, technically water is not wet. It makes things wet. Like, imagine if you have a fan, and it’s blowing on something, it will make something colder. That doesn’t mean that the fan itself is cold, though--” Logan shut up, realizing that he was rambling out random facts again. 

He turned to face Patton, looking him in the eyes as he shrugged and said, “Well, that is what I think, at least…” He mainly just stopped himself because he didn’t think Patton wanted to hear him rambling. He didn’t care about this too much anyway (that was a lie, he loved debating with morons who believed water was wet for some asinine reason), he just liked talking to Patton.

Patton gave him a slightly lopsided smile. He couldn’t really recognize who this was, even after about half an hour of talking. That was only because he didn’t have his glasses on, though. That’s when he got what was, in his mind, literally the best idea ever.

He reached forward and took Logan’s glasses, putting them on himself -- “Woah..” That was a bad woah. Things looked even worse, since Logan had a really, really bad prescription.

Logan blinked at Patton, squinting slightly to try to see. He couldn’t see at all. Patton, even only a few feet from him, was only a blob of slightly tan skin and honey brown hair, still in the correct shape, but without much detail.

“Uh, Patton? How are my glasses working out for you? I doubt you can see,” Logan smiled and rolled his eyes at the absurd situation. 

Patton thought Logan was mostly made of weird shapes. It was really weird, it actually got Patton to start laughing. He slightly covered his mouth by putting his hand over it, but that didn’t stop the light giggling. “You--” He tried speaking through the laughter but it was difficult, “You look s-so--” He couldn’t even finish the sentence due to his persistent giggling.

“I look so what, Patton? Finish your sentences,” Logan said in a joking tone. He loved watching Patton’s face light up with a smile, even though it was pretty blurry. Logan, and nearly everyone else, hadn’t really seen that smile in a while.

The smiles and giggles continued for another moment before Patton eventually took the glasses off. He didn’t hand the pair of glasses back to Logan though, instead scooting a little closer and trying to put them on Logan himself. He made sure not to poke him in the eye, but when it didn’t work, he just set them on top of Logan’s head.

Logan couldn’t contain a smile at that action, and he slid his glasses down from his head back onto his face.

Patton’s vision was blurry yet again, and if he was honest, having those glasses on for even those few seconds probably made his eyesight worse. It was better if he just didn’t have them on. Patton turned to face Logan when he heard him speak up again.

“I believe I see your glasses over there on the bed, Patton.” Logan was aware of how close they still were.

Patton nodded and said, “I knooow, but they’re too far, “ It was a bit of a lie. All he would have to do is sit up and he could probably reach them from their place on the floor. Instead, Patton gave a small smile before a face of contemplation crossed his face as he let another random thought out in the open, “You know that -- like, uh… contacts are basically boneless glasses!” A grin crossed Patton’s face as he finally put his thoughts into words, and he couldn’t suppress a giggle at the thought. He was just spewing out whatever random thoughts came into his mind, and he let another out shortly after the first, “Or… glasses are basically the transformers of contacts.”

Logan smiled, saying genuinely, “You have such strange, random thoughts, Patton. Even when you are not drunk, like you are now. They are quite intriguing, if I am being honest.”

“Well that’s cause I’m a stupidhead-bones for brains,” Patton giggled, “Ramen--” he meant Roman, “--says I shouldn’t talk too much,” Patton was saying all of this with a smile, as if it was something to joke about. Patton thought for a few more seconds before saying, “My words are… uh…” he paused before nodding once he found an adequate word, “Weirdiculorky…” Weird, ridiculous, and dorky.

Logan’s smile had dropped when Patton mentioned how Roman said he shouldn’t talk too much.

“No, talk all you want. I really enjoy conversing with you, Patton,” Logan gave a small smile though there was slight anger in the back of his mind. He needed to forget about Roman for right now. He shook his head slightly to get rid of the thought, and said quietly, “Your words are always important.”

“Soooo… it ain’t me word box, it’s me noggin? That sounds just luverly,” Patton giggled as he spoke in that idiotic voice. This pub guy friend sounded way too serious right now. He just needed to have some fun, so maybe Patton was messing with him by speaking like that.

Still though, it was a compliment, so Patton leaned over and wrapped his arms around Logan, putting his head on his chest, “Thaaanks!” He was still giggling. Completely ignoring the fact that Logan held his breath, Patton let another random thought slip through, “If you close one eye, you can’t see anything, not even black. But if you close both eyes then you see black…” He closed his eyes and then only closed his left eye, doing it a few times to prove a point, and then saying, “Ah -- I don’t like this…”

It was probably due to his dislike of physical contact that Logan held his breath when Patton layed down on his chest, his arms still wrapped around him in a slight hug. Yes, that was the reason. Still, Logan didn’t want to move Patton, because he was here to comfort Patton and it seemed that this was what Patton wanted.

So Logan ignored that for right now, and decided to test out the eye thing that Patton was rambling about. With a quiet voice, he said, “Huh. I suppose you are correct,” Logan’s voice was shallow because he was speaking quietly. He didn’t want to move his chest too much. He didn’t want to disturb Patton.

Though he had no clue why he enjoyed being so close to Patton.


	10. (The Party 5/5)

A few more minutes had passed as Patton continued to ramble out questions and Logan answered them. This was all… comfortable. That was the right word for this, or at least the best word Logan could come up with. He wouldn’t even mind being here for the rest of the night.

After a short silence, Patton let out a gasp as he apparently came to another revelation, “I figured out why some people like sleeping so much -- because happiness is just like sleeping! You don’t know you were experiencing it until it’s over,” It’s not like he was _wrong_. These were the types of questions that Logan had been receiving for the better part of ten minutes. He didn’t mind at all, though.

It was strange to him just how quickly he had become attached to Patton. It seemed like it all happened so suddenly. A gradual growth over the better part of a year in which Logan began to appreciate Patton as Roman’s significant other and a relatively nice person, but as time went on, his connection to Patton just grew incrementally, until it eventually went straight up in the past two days, specifically this night. Like an exponential graph. After the whole ordeal in the bathroom, their talk at the fire pit outside, and this strange urge to protect Patton (similar to when he felt the need to protect Virgil eight years ago, but this time… different), it was hard to ignore his growing devotion to protect and comfort this wonderful ray of sunshine.

A ray of sunshine that had been particularly dim as of late, admittedly.

Logan ignored most of this for the moment, instead choosing to respond to Patton’s comment about sleeping and its correlation to happiness. He thought for a moment, and while staring up at the ceiling, he voiced his thoughts, “Yes, I suppose that makes sense. People typically do not realize they were happy until the moment passes. Whether that’s from not being so happy anymore or from being nostalgic for happier memories in the past.”

Looking away from the ceiling, Logan directed his attention to Patton as he said with a small smile, “You can be quite the genius, Patton.”

Patton returned the smile with a slightly confused expression, “But I… never gave anyone three wishes…” He let the sentence die off as another random thought came to his mind, “You know if you ever wished for a lot of money, a genie could trick you and crush you to death with over a billion pennies.”

A small laugh did escape Logan when Patton confused genius for genie. Afterwards, he listened to Patton’s ramblings about genies, and decided to offer some of his own, “Going by the rules in the movie Aladdin--” a movie that Logan only due to Roman showing him when Logan’s parents refused, “--you could technically wish for there to be no rule book, and then everything would be available to you. Then you could wish for infinite wishes.”

“Yes! You could just find all the loopholes!” Patton grinned, seeming very excited about this topic, “Like if you wish to be immortal, that wouldn’t be allowed, probably. But, you could wish for there to be _one_ thing that could kill you. It could be like… a snail! A specific snail that’s also immortal and is trying to hunt you down…” His voice got a little more serious as he thought through all of this, “But like… there’s more than one snail. Now you have a phobia of snails…”

Patton let out a small giggle, “...that did not turn out how I wanted it.”

Logan couldn’t repress _another_ damn smile at the giggle. He’s been smiling a lot, he just realized. Was that weird? Logan had no clue why Patton’s laughter affected him so much.

He realized that his hand has been out of Patton’s hair for a while, but for some inexplicable reason, Logan wanted to go back to what he was doing before. For right now he ignored the urge and continued to listen as Patton rambled about genies.

“If I had a genie, my first wish would be to get me another weasel. My second would be to cure both of my weasels of any diseases, and then my last wish would be to make ‘em live forever!” Patton grinned as he said all of that. A weasel? Did Patton know they were illegal to own in this area without a permit? Logan thought that Patton would probably start crying if he found that out in this state of mind.

Logan was also aware of the fact that Patton’s voice was gradually getting quieter with each word he spoke. He nodded along as Patton continued to speak, looking up at the ceiling as he listened, occasionally looking down at Patton. Logan didn’t really talk unless he was asked a specific question by Patton. He was content just to listen.

His words gradually went from talking to mumbling, and Patton was trying his hardest not to close his eyes. Patton was entering what was probably the final stage for him when he’s drunk, which is sleepiness. Obviously, he would deny the fact he was tired. He was having too much fun right now to admit it.

He still had his head rested on top of Logan’s chest, which was probably one of the things keeping him awake. He assumed that if he fell asleep then chances are Logan would be uncomfortable.

Logan looked down at Patton yet again, and saw his eyes gradually close and suddenly open again. It was as if… “Patton, are you trying to stay awake?” It seemed Patton had been getting increasingly more tired as the night went on. Logan brought his wrist up to his face and was able to read his watch with the light of the moon and nearby street lamps coming through the windows. After seeing the time, he said, “It’s already one o’clock in the morning. You do not need to stay awake.”

Patton shook his head slightly at the question. He attempted to reassure Logan, “I’m fine…” Logan didn’t need to know how tired he was. Patton used up most of his energy earlier during the party, and it's clear that Patton wasn’t one for staying up late anyway.

“S-sleep is for the weak,” Patton mumbled. It was nearly a whisper.

Despite his better judgement, Logan couldn’t really help himself from stroking Patton’s hair again. It might help him fall asleep? Wait… was Logan coming up with excuses? He ignored that for now and responded, “No, sleep is not for the weak,” he spoke quietly.

Some quiet mumbles were let out by Patton, and they were like how a child sounds when they don’t get their way but they’re too afraid to say anything about it. Patton yawned before hiding his face on Logan’s chest, “No sleep…” he mumbled.

Logan realized that he stopped breathing when Patton did that. His eyes widened at the realization and he cursed himself internally for the reaction. Logan ended up not even hearing what Patton mumbled next, too focused on his mind screaming at him. Once the initial panic was over, Logan contemplated _why_ he even reacted that way. It was difficult to come up with any conclusive answer… at least to Logan. So he ignored it for the moment.

Mostly he just didn’t even want to consider the possibilities.

“Sorry, what did you say, Patton?” Logan asked since he hadn’t heard what Patton said due to his internal panic.

Patton whined when he was told to repeat himself. Oh boy, this child needs a nap before he starts complaining that the damn moon is too bright. He looked up so his voice would be more clear, “I said no sleep. I’m gonna be nocturnal forever now.”

And then he hid his face again, “And no one can stop me!” Oh god, he’s rebelling now. 

“Patton, that is impossible. Even after just 36 hours without sleep you begin to negatively impact several bodily functions like your appetite, metabolism, temperature, mood, and stress level. After three or four nights without sleep you can start hallucinating,” In reality, Logan didn’t need to explain this much. However, he felt that if he didn’t run his mouth, he would be forced to focus on other things. Namely Patton.

Not even half of whatever Logan just said was processed by Patton. He couldn’t really understand most of it? If anything, those words made him feel even more sleepy!

“You’re really not helping this protest against any form of sleep and I hope you know that,” Patton said before letting out a small sigh. He knew full well he couldn’t fight this forever, he had to sleep _eventually_. Then again, he didn’t really want this night to end. “I’m gonna be an owl now, cause they stay awake at night,” Patton looked up at Logan before saying, “Who who.”

Logan smiled and rolled his eyes at the whole owl thing, but he didn’t really say anything. Not much he could do besides let Patton ramble and inevitably tire himself out. And then Patton returned his smile. 

Weird feelings.

Patton laid his head back down, only this time he was facing the side instead of straight up, so he was facing Logan. Patton kept mumbling the word ‘who’ for a bit before his mind started to drift elsewhere.

What do owls eat? Rats. Who probably has rats in his room? Remus. Whose room is this? Remus’ room. His eyes widened a bit before he jumped to another alcohol-fueled random conclusion, saying in a quiet, awe-struck voice, “Remus is Linguini from ratatouille…”

Logan couldn’t help but let out a relatively loud, sudden laugh. That was very unexpected. It was difficult to get Logan to laugh, but somehow Patton had achieved it so many times this night. And after a few seconds in which Logan calmed down his laughter, he asked, “And how did you come to that conclusion?”

“He has horrible taste when it comes to making food, he’s most likely friends with a bunch of rats, and he probably really does have a giant rat controlling him… he _is_ a giant rat!” And then Patton gasped and said, “ _Remus is the rat king…_ ”

Patton felt like he discovered what happened to Atlantis. Such an amazing discovery, “These aren’t just theories anymore, these are _facts_. Facts that are yet to be revealed and I must alert the authorities-- no, the public!”

He was dead serious. He proceeded to sit himself up, a bit dizzy when doing so. After that, he put one hand on the side of the bed to help him stand, “Woah--”

Logan sat up, looking at Patton with somewhat panicked concern. Patton was shaky, and would most likely fall if he let go. But in his mind, he was up to important business and everyone needed to know Remus’ true identity.

“Patton, do not stand up so quickly. You’re still drunk,” Logan stood up and walked the short distance to Patton, holding an arm around his waist to stabilize him.

He did it on instinct. With purely the urge to help. Once his hand was there, however, he was stuck between wanting to move his hand away and wanting to keep it there. Once the second thought crossed his mind, he decided on the first. Once Patton was able to stand again, Logan removed his hand.

Patton had been speaking. He was rambling about rats and birds and the bourgeoisie, but Logan was aware that he suddenly stopped speaking when… when Logan had helped him stand.

When Patton felt the hand wrap around his waist, his drunken mind immediately thought of Roman. _Roman_. He did this all the time. To keep Patton near him, to keep him close and “secure”... Patton’s drunken brain went off with all sorts of alerts. He suddenly felt awake, the burst of slight fear and adrenaline making him more conscious of his surroundings than he previously was. His excitement completely faded, he stopped speaking, and due to the correlation to Roman and keeping Patton close, Patton suddenly felt like he had done something wrong.

Patton took a moment to get himself together before quietly mumbling, barely even audible, “Please don’t do that again.”

He tried to walk, but he felt like everything was still spinning and the door seemed very far away. He knew he was about to fall, and he did just that, landing on the bed he had previously been leaning against.

And Logan was suddenly very glad that he removed his hand. He looked between Patton and his hand, looking at his hand as if it had burned Patton. Logan suddenly remembered Patton’s unhappy and uncomfortable expression from this afternoon, before English class, when Roman had his hand around Patton’s waist, as always. It seemed abnormal then, the unhappy expressions, but now it made sense with the information he learned earlier that night…

Wow, Logan made a huge fucking mistake.

“Sorry, Patton. I’m sorry, I won’t do it again,” He said quickly and in a slight panic, using contractions in his speaking yet again. He was nervous. Obviously, he had felt Patton flinch, had heard his quiet voice telling him not to do it again. Holy shit. This was bad. Logan had to clear his throat and take a deep breath, calming himself down. 

He sat on the edge of the bed that Patton had fallen on, sitting particularly far away from him, “Are you okay?”

Logan asked for two reasons. He wanted to know if Patton was okay from the fall, obviously. Most importantly, though. Was whether or not Patton was okay after what Logan had just done. From an outside perspective, holding someone’s waist to protect them from falling wouldn’t seem like a big deal, but it was. It has become, in Patton’s mind, Roman’s way of shielding Patton. It wasn’t a good shield. It was used to keep Patton in and others out. Others who were harmless.

Patton nodded, followed by a quick, “Yeah, definitely!” He gave a small smile and said, “It wasn’t a very big fall.”

He didn’t bring up whether or not he was okay after what Logan had done.

Patton knew that it definitely wasn’t intentional, and Logan probably didn’t even know, but it didn’t distract him from the fact it nearly made his heart stop. After having such a good time, just… the sudden reminder of Roman’s grip on him, even when he seemed so far away… it had been a bit of a shock.

He thought maybe he was just over exaggerating this whole thing. Roman would usually say he was dramatic at times, so maybe now was one of those times. Patton went quiet again, not knowing what to say. It was obvious he was going to avoid the whole conversation.

The room filled with an uncomfortable silence. It was palpable, the complete and utter awkwardness that had overtaken the air surrounding these two boys. Logan began to lecture himself internally.

If he had just left Patton alone in that split second, they would still be talking and joking. Lying on the floor, staring at the ceiling and just talking to the infectiously happy Patton had probably been one of the best experiences of his life.

_And he ruined it._

Logan rested his forearms on his knees, hunching over as he stared at the floor from his seated position on the edge of the bed and as far from Patton as he could seemingly get. Logan’s face had a concentrated, yet sad expression. His mind was filled with thoughts of different scenarios that could have happened instead if he hadn’t majorly fucked up, and any empty spaces between were filled with words of scorn aimed at himself for being such a moron.

Patton had already confided in his relationship status. He had told Logan how terribly everything was going. And yet Logan did the _one_ action that symbolized Roman’s possessiveness over Patton. How could he possibly be such a dumbass?

It was obvious now that Patton’s attempt at brushing the subject off hadn’t worked at all. Patton’s smile faded once more as he looked at the ceiling. He felt like he was just being dramatic. He was always quiet with these things when it came to Roman, he should have just stayed quiet with Logan, too.

“Um… I’m sorry. Are you okay?” Patton asked. There he goes again, apologizing for something he didn’t even have control of. Whenever he made things seem more important than they actually were, saying sorry usually cheered Roman up really quick. He thought it would probably work for Logan too. 

But who was he kidding? Roman and Logan were completely different. For all Patton knows, it might just make things worse. Logan could just give him the silent treatment, or get up and leave, or get angry at--

Logan suddenly turned to face Patton with a confused, shocked, and somewhat hurt expression, “No, no, Patton… don’t apologize. What? You didn’t do anything wrong,” Logan said it like it was hard to believe Patton even felt the need to say sorry at all. 

“I’m sorry for… grabbing your waist. I wanted to help you stand up, but I didn’t think things through and… You don’t like it when Roman does that, so…” Logan started off by rambling, but was continually trailing off on his sentences near the end. It was hard for Logan to explain himself, for once. Normally he let emotions sit back during explanations. They had no purpose in fact. But right now, recognizing Patton’s feelings was critical, and it was more important than any other thing Logan could think of right now. Logan couldn’t help but let his remorse slip through.

Patton, in hindsight, wasn’t at all surprised that Logan told him he shouldn’t apologize. He knew Logan was better than that. He wouldn’t just get angry at him like that… Still, Patton wasn’t going to try to reassure Logan that what he did was okay, because now he knew that Logan could see right through him.

“I know you didn’t mean to… it wasn’t your fault,” Patton was being genuine. He wasn’t placing the blame, he was just accepting the fact that sometimes things like this are out of people’s control, “I would be lying if I said it wasn’t a big deal… but, uh… thank you for apologizing.”

Logan nodded. He took a shaky breath and turned away. He couldn’t look at Patton. He had fucked up, and although he apologized and Patton accepted it, that wouldn’t change the fact that Logan felt like he was, objectively, a piece of shit.

Patton felt really bad for upsetting Logan like this. Obviously he didn’t mean for this to happen. He wasn’t sure of what to say or do. Logan was usually difficult for Patton to figure out. He stared at the ceiling, not saying anything or moving for a bit. Eventually, Patton did sit up. He wanted to show that he really wasn’t mad at Logan, so he hugged him from the side and stayed there.

Logan’s body stiffened when Patton hugged him. He hadn’t been able to see him approaching, so it was sudden. He took slightly shaky breaths while Patton’s arms were around him, and gradually, he calmed down enough to relax and just let the hug happen. He stared at the brown carpet, focusing on that rather than on Patton. Rather than focusing on the hug. Rather than focusing on the fact that he still felt terrible for making Patton panic like that. It seemed inexcusable in Logan’s mind.

Quietly, breaking the silence, Logan quietly mumbled, “I’m sorry.” Somehow, saying it one more time did help him feel a little better.

Patton nodded slightly during the hug. It seemed like acceptance. After a few more seconds of neither one of them moving, Patton figured that Logan just wanted to be left alone. He quietly sighed as he let go of the other.

The sleepiness was starting to come back, so Patton scooted over to the other side of the bed to lay down. He didn’t care that he didn’t have a pillow or a blanket. He was just tired. He stared at the wall for a bit before he could already feel himself starting to drift off.

The only thing that was keeping Patton awake was the fact that he still felt bad about the situation with Logan. He closed his eyes, but didn’t fall asleep instantly. He was left to think.

Logan decided to move on from the awkwardness with a thought that came to mind, and was worth addressing, “You probably shouldn’t sleep in here… you know… Remus’ room?”

Patton knew Logan was right, but he was also really tired right now. Too tired to care. He mumbled, “I’ll only sleep for a little… People are in Roman’s room and I can’t go home cause Roman is supposed to take me when he’s ready…”

There was a very big chance that Remus would kill both Patton and Roman if he found out that Patton had been in his room, but was too tired to care. Sounded more like a Roman problem.

Logan nodded. As much as he loved spending time with Patton in this past hour or so, it had been tainted by his mitake. So, since it was late at night and he could sense Patton’s growing sleepiness, Logan decided that maybe it was time to leave.

“I’ll… see you on Monday, Patton,” Logan said, peeking his head into the room after stepping out. He didn’t wait for a response before quietly closing the door. This weekend would feel like an eternity, Logan could already tell. 

He made his way downstairs and found Virgil collapsed on a couch. He poked his shoulder, and after a few minutes of trying to get him awake, Logan was finally able to head back to his car with a very tired Virgil close behind him. He drove back to Virgil's house in silence. Once he was dropped off, Logan headed back to his own house.

Logan thanked the stars his parents were out late on some sort of business trip, because arriving home at nearly 2:30 in the morning would definitely land him some sort of punishment. A quick glance in the kitchen showed his note had been untouched, so it was likely Logan didn’t even have to explain where he was. He took the note and quietly ripped it up, taking it upstairs to his room.

He threw the paper in the small trash can in the corner of his room, and then fell onto his bed.

Logan’s mind was running with thoughts that he didn’t quite like to think about. Roman, his mistake with Patton, Patton’s laughter and smiles that no one had seen in so long, Dee’s strange and cryptic message… it was a lot to process.

Logan attempted to banish every last thought from his mind as he tried to fall asleep, and after half an hour, he finally succeeded. His brain shut up for once, and he fell asleep.

\------

Patton had been able to sleep for two or so hours before Roman entered the room to wake him up. By that time, Patton was half asleep, but sober enough to understand most of what was going on.

It was obvious Roman was completely out of it, worse than Patton had been. A lot of people were still here, most of them were unconscious though, so that would probably explain why Roman would finally come up here. He got bored.

Roman would _not_ be able to get Patton home, even if his life depended on it. Patton was honestly surprised Roman even made it up the stairs. Patton didn’t want to leave Roman like this, but he was also kinda mad at him. So what did Patton do? He let Roman rest… in Remus’ room. This was gonna be pretty fun in the morning.

After little deliberation, it was obvious Patton was going to have to walk himself home. He didn’t mind it though. It wasn’t a far distance, and it was actually pretty nice out. He just had to make sure he stayed awake and not fall asleep on the sidewalk. To keep his mind focused on not collapsing, he thought about what happened while he was drunk. His memory was fuzzy, but he remembered some parts.

By the time he made it home, Patton was too tired to even make it upstairs. He chose to sleep on the couch, knocked out cold the second he felt the pillow beneath his head.


	11. Chapter 11

When the next morning arrived, Logan awoke to a small headache and thoughts from last night that were instantly resurfacing to his head.

Overall, Logan just hoped that Patton had either completely forgotten about his colossal fuck-up, or had genuinely forgiven him. Logan wanted to be there to help Patton, he had even promised Patton that he would do so. If Patton was scared of him though, Logan couldn’t really do much. Besides, Logan knew that Patton was a smart person, and that he was sympathetic enough to understand that this one mistake didn’t define Logan’s ability to actually help. 

That didn’t really stop Logan from worrying, though. He tried to ignore it for now, walking out of his room to make himself breakfast.

His parents were never home at this time. They both ran this huge tech company together, and they started working at 7:00 in the morning, and usually didn’t get many days off. Logan was used to making himself breakfast, and he did so quietly as he let himself sift through his thoughts.

Well, not _let_ , per se. It was more along the lines of dealing with them and quietly suffering. Whenever Logan did anything wrong, he’d berate himself over it for a _long_ time. For example, if he got one question wrong on a quiz, he would probably hate himself because of it for _weeks_ , even if he was allowed to retake the test and got 100% on it the second time around. It was just how he was raised: perfection is mandatory.

This situation, however, is one of the first in which _emotions_ are involved. For a mistake like this, Logan had no clue how long it would be sitting in the back of his mind.

Once his meal was prepared, he sat at the dining table, eating in silence. With his parents being gone, he was used to being alone. Usually, that was a good thing. Silence meant good conditions for studying and homework and whatnot.

Right now, though, the silence just felt suffocating. Logan couldn’t do much but think about last night. All of the new information, like the situation with Roman, his mistake with Patton, and Dee’s strange message after being at the firepit were going through his mind… that and how much time he had spent with Patton.

Despite the circumstances, it had been… enjoyable.

Still, thinking through all of this wasn’t very fun, or healthy, come to think of it. Logan pulled out his phone and sent Virgil a message.

\------

When Patton felt the sun shining directly in his eyes, he blinked them open and glanced at his phone… It was much later than he was used to waking up.

He was holding onto one of the couch pillows and using the rest to cover his legs since he was wearing shorts, the same shorts he had been wearing last night. He realized now that he was on the couch.

Usually, Patton would wake up bright and early and very happy to be awake, ready to face the day. This was not one of those days. When he finally got over the initial stage of waking up, and was fully aware of his senses and where he was, the first thing Patton felt was something along the lines of…

_D e a t h._

He felt sick to his stomach, his head felt like there were literal hammers on the inside of it, continually hitting against his skill, and on top of all of that, he was dying of thirst. Why was this all a problem? He felt too sick to even get out of this comfortable spot.

So instead he whined and hugged a pillow against his face to block out any noise and sunlight. So this is a hangover, huh?

Strangely, Patton’s first thought was, _‘Now I know how Spiderman felt in Infinity War…’_ Patton had never really had too many drinks in his life, the only reason he’d ever had any was because of Roman. Even then, it would usually just be one or two cups and then he would stop. He promised himself that the next time he was handed a drink, he would throw it away when no one was looking. Or at least just say no in first place. 

Across town, Virgil woke up in a similar situation to Patton. However, Virgil was more used to drinking than the puffball, but Virgil still had a pretty bad hangover since he had a little more than he was used to last night.

And Virgil _knew_ that Patton would not be faring well at this time, since he saw just how much he had had to drink… thanks to Roman… So he decided that he should call Patton. What with the whole hangover thing, and because the way Roman was treating Patton yesterday still gave Virgil a bad feeling. Virgil picked up his phone and called Patton.

As soon as the ringing began, Patton thought he was going insane, _‘Oh my gosh now there’s bells in my head… in a… music-like tone…’_

“Oh wait--” Patton said out loud as he realized what it was. He moved the pillow off of his face and searched around for the phone. Patton just really wanted that ringing to stop. After a few more seconds of digging around in the cushions, Patton found it.

He blinked his eyes a few times before reading the name. He really didn’t want to talk to anyone, but Virgil… oh well. It might be important. Patton let out a small sigh before picking up.

“Hey…” That was his attempt at making it seem like everything was okay.

“You doin’ good, Pat? You drank a _lot_ yesterday so you must be pretty hung over. I know I am. I’ve got a _terrible_ headache,” Virgil mumbled into his phone as he stared up at the ceiling above his bed. The sunlight streaming through the small slit in the curtains near Virgil’s bed was pissing him off, but he didn’t bother to get up to fix it.

Patton was too tired to even try to move at this point. He laid back down on the couch, putting some pillows around him so it was like a weird igloo fort. It was comfy.

“I now know what it feels like to have a near-death experience,” Patton exaggerated. He was doing it on purpose. His head hurt.

Virgil laughed, but then groaned quickly after. He let out a small sigh, “Ugh, I really shouldn’t be laughing right now. Damn that hurt…” He sat up slightly, gaining a little bit of determination to close his curtains completely, but even the small movement made his head pound. This fucking sucks.

“Watch yo profanity,” Patton mumbled. He may be in some pain, but that wouldn’t stop him from watching out for them no no words. Better watch your language.

Patton still let it slide, beyond that one little comment though, because he had a question he _really_ needed answered at this exact moment, “How long do these things last? I feel like it’s been a century already…” His sentence ended in a sort of whine. What do you expect? It hurts.

Virgil struggled to think through the pounding in his head. After a few seconds, though, he answered, “Well, last time I asked Logan I think he said that maximum it can be like 3 days? It’s never that long though, only in like, extreme circumstances, but he rambled about it so it stayed in my mind… Anyway, the average is like 8 to 24 hours.”

After a few more seconds of thinking, he decided to add, “Also, Logan said I think… drink water, have sugary things while you’re drinking water. Also have… what are they called?” He thought for a few more seconds, “Uh… electrolytes. They’re in gatorade, pretty sure. You also gotta eat breakfast, and then go back to sleep.”

Patton had the decency to wait until Virgil was done speaking to ask, but… “Eight hours?!” He groaned. He might as well sit and do nothing all day. Even though complaining doesn’t really help, it sure felt like it helped, “I’m gonna turn into a potato Virgil. Just sitting here forever, doing nothing. For eternity… I’m gonna die here and at my funeral I want my weasel to wear a nice tux. No shoes, though, he’s gonna trip.”

Virgil let out a small huff of a laugh at the jokes, rolling his eyes. No way was he actually going to laugh again, he learned his lesson. 

“Well, as long as we do what Logan recommends, I think we’ll be good. He’s basically google for me, no need for the internet. But yeah, all of that stuff works.”

Patton knew that Virgil was right about listening to Logan, but honestly, he didn’t feel like doing _anything_. He was the type of person to take care of these things for other people, not when it came to helping himself. He mumbled quietly, “I think I’m just gonna lay here and stare at the ceiling. That sounds better than moving.”

“Patton, take care of yourself or I will come over there and force you to take care of yourself. I will do it,” Virgil threatened.

“But it’s haaaaaaard,” Patton complained. He’s never had to deal with a hangover before, and he _never_ wanted to have to do it again. He asked, “How are you dealing with this so calmly? I feel like getting hit by a car would be less painful than this.”

Virgil shrugged, “I dunno. I’ve dealt with it a lot. When Dee and Remus used to be your friends, it’s kind of hard not to get roped into things like that…” It had taken a while for Virgil to open up to everyone about his previous ‘friendships’ with Dee and Remus, even being so trusted at one point to know Dee’s real name. Janus trusted it with no one but Remus, now. At this point in his life, Virgil was open about that shitty part of his past. Since Logan gave Virgil a way into the better life he has now, though, all of that stuff from his past has become all but forgotten.

“Next time you even see me pick up a cup of that stuff, promise me you’ll slap it out of my hand and then slap some common sense into me,” Patton said, dead serious. 

He wasn’t sure it Roman was even awake yet, but he decided to check later. Just in case he was energetic and loud at the moment. He knew alcohol basically had very little effect on Roman, and Patton _really_ didn’t feel like hearing his super loud voice at the moment.

“Of course. Now do what I said or I swear to god I will put myself through the pain of getting up and leaving my house to help you,” Virgil threatened again, still smiling even as he did so. He knew that would get Patton to do _something_ to help himself feel better.

Virgil wasn’t sure if he would honestly get up to help, maybe he would just keep calling Patton or get someone else to help, but Patton was such a light drinker, and when someone’s a light drinker, hangovers _sucked_. The first ones are usually the worst.

Patton just ended up making a bunch of random whiney noises, which really didn’t make it clear if he would do it or not. If he felt good enough, then maybe he would have something sugary and get himself a water bottle.

He decided that later, he would text Roman about never giving him alcohol ever again.

“But the coooouuuuch…” He went quiet for a moment before realizing something… He gasped and said, “My weasel--” George has been in his cage for way too long. Oh but the stairs… THE STAAAIRS...

Patton sat up, looking at the staircase, “If I die going up the stairs, remember me.”

“Of course, Pat. Go save your pet,” Virgil said before hanging up. He didn’t really want to freak out about Patton’s potential fall, so he ignored his phone and focused on forcing himself to sit up. He leaned over to close the curtains. Success.

He can get up to get some water later.

Preparing himself, Patton slid his phone into his pocket before slowly standing up, using the arm of the couch for support. He felt the room spinning a bit, already wanting to quiet. But that poor baby weasel was basically his child so like… Patton’s just gotta suffer. He placed a hand over his mouth to prevent vomiting, and made his way to the stairs. Thus, the journey begins.

Once he finally reached the top, he just used the railing for balance as he lowered himself to the floor. He laid there for five minutes. So close, and yet so far. He honestly thought that someone could run him over right now, and Patton would thank them.

He looked down the hallway at his door. He really didn’t feel like walking, so he just rolled over to the door. It was much faster, anyway. And upon reaching the door, he reached up to the handle and used it as leverage to get himself standing again, before opening the door and enthusiastically, yet quietly, saying, “I’m here!”

Making his way over to George’s cage, he leaned on the table it sat on. Thankfully, George was asleep on his little lion plush. Patton couldn’t contain the small gasp and smile that spread across his face as he whispered gleefully, “Little baby!”

Patton opened the cage and took George out. Mission successful!

He took George and sat down on his bed, complaining to the weasel, “George, my head huuuurrrts…” George was a weasel, so obviously he wasn’t listening. He was trying to climb onto Patton’s shoulders.

Patton lied down, staring at the ceiling as George climbed onto his head. Patton just wanted to lay here all day and do absolutely nothing.

Virgil groaned as he got out of bed, forcing himself to walk down the hallway to his kitchen. He struggled to reach one of the cups (damn him and his short height) and filled it with water from the sink. He drank the water quietly, sipping it as he sat on the counter. 

And then he got a text.

_[So, I believe I might have fucked up last night.]_

Virgil looked down at his phone. That was from Logan? Huh, this seems serious.

_[swearing, huh? something bad must have happened.]_

_[Patton was obviously drunk yesterday, we both know that, but he had lost his balance and I went to stabilize him, since he was falling, but I did so by putting my hand around his waist, like Roman does. Patton was very upset by it and I feel terrible.]_

Virgil cringed. That must have been terrible. He didn’t know the extent of Patton’s total discomfort, didn’t see what Logan saw last night in the bathroom. Virgil knew it was bad, but he still didn’t _really_ know.

_[well, pat’s good now. i even mentioned you a few times when i explained the cure for a hangover, and he didn’t really react, so it seems like he’s fine. thanks for that info, by the way. it’s helping me and pat.]_

Logan let out a relieved sigh, letting a bit of the worry slip away. So Patton either didn’t remember or had actually forgiven him. He heard his name and wasn’t upset by it, so… he must be fine. Right? Logan moved on with the conversation anyway.

_[How is he doing? I believe this is the first time he has ever had that much alcohol.]_

_[like i said, bad hangover. he wanted to lay down forever but he got up to feed his weasel.]_

_[He mentioned a weasel last night, actually. It seemed strange to me considering they’re illegal to own without a permit.]_

Virgil blinked down at his phone. Illegal? Why? Patton’s weasel was usually really nice, or at least he’s heard. Roman didn’t like it very much, but from Patton’s perspective, Virgil has only heard good things.

_[i guess he just doesn’t know they’re illegal. i didn’t know either. but he loves george a lot.]_

Logan stared down at his phone, and suddenly, he had what was probably a really stupid idea. It was worth a shot, though, right?

_[Hold on.]_

Logan went back upstairs to his room and sat down at his computer. He started researching.

Apparently, there was an animal rescue about 30 minutes away that allowed people to buy a variety of animals, like cats, dogs, ferrets, and even animals that required permits after the customer went through rigorous testing.

Logan grabbed his keys and headed towards his car. This would take a while. But it would be a great apology. He honestly didn’t even know if Patton still remembered what happened, but on the off chance he did, Logan hoped this would be enough to make up for it.

\------

Patton continued to lay down on his bed peacefully. He was napping while George used Patton’s hair as some sort of… nest? Those animals don’t make nest though, so what the heck.

Anyway, that was all interrupted when his phone went off. Patton whined, not wanting to answer but also wanting the ringing to stop. He grabbed it and checked the caller ID… Roman. Great. So now he could either ignore and have to deal with him constantly trying to call, or answer it and listen to him talking _very_ loudly.

“What do you think I should do?” Patton asked George. He was more or less just looking around the room, not giving a beaver’s dam. When George just looked into Patton’s eyes with a blank expression, Patton responded, “You’re right,” and he answered the phone. Poor choice, really.

“Patton?” Roman actually sounded pretty worried, “Why did it take you so long to answer, are you okay?” Still, despite Roman’s good intentions on being worried, Patton winced.

He replied with a quiet, “I’m fine, I’m at home napping. Please be quiet…” Based on the loud voice coming through the phone, Roman didn’t seem to be suffering nearly as much as Patton was. He’s been through this enough times to know what to do and how to get rid of it.

“Well, ya know, maybe I wouldn’t be so panicked if I didn’t wake up to my brother telling me he saw you just walk out last night. Like, seriously? At what, 3 AM? You could have been stabbed by a hobo.”

Being stabbed by a hobo did not sound so bad right now. Patton really didn’t want to hear Roman complaining, not when he was dealing with this. His voice was still quiet as he asked, “Okay, okay, I’m sorry, just _please_ be quiet…”

“I’m not even being that loud, why are you--” Roman cut his sentence off when the realization hit, “Ooohh, I see. Must be bad, sorry, Pat.” Patton took the phone away from his face for a second to let out a sigh of relief. At least he got through to him. But then Roman said, “Here-- I’ll come over and help you, okay?” It sounded like Roman thought that was a good idea.

“No! I-I mean, uh… you don’t have to do that, I’m sure I’ll be fi--”

“Nonsense, I have experience with this stuff so I’ll be able to watch over you,” Roman smiled, happy to help his boyfriend feel better.

“No, Roman, I--” And Patton was cut off by Roman hanging up. Patton quietly groaned and buried his face in a nearby pillow. He eventually looked up at George, “Which tux do you wanna wear to my funeral?”

\------

Logan, after a long drive, finally arrived at the shelter. He walked in the door and breathed in the smell of the room. It smelled like a zoo, but at least it was slightly better. He made his way to the counter, toward a short, dark-skinned girl with long black hair. She smiled up at him, “Hello! How may I help you?”

“I would like to buy a weasel, but I do not have the required permit. I came to this specific location so that I could acquire one.”

The girl nodded, “Alright, we’ll just have to do a background check, as well as have you answer a few questions about pets you’ve previously owned,” She spoke as she grabbed a clipboard and led Logan to a small seating area in the back near some large cages with cats running around in them.

Once there, Logan had to tell this girl his name and answer a long series of questions. His dad had gotten him a puppy in his childhood, but it was given away shortly after when Logan’s grades dropped. This woman didn’t really need to know that, though. He’d owned the dog for about a year, so that plus his extensive research before coming here gave him enough experience.

After about half an hour, he was granted a permit. Obviously he couldn’t answer the questions for Patton, so technically the weasels belonged to him, legally, but they would stay with Patton.

Logan was led through the store by the girl. She showed him where the weasels were, and he picked out one that was almost completely white, save for a small bit of grey on his forehead. Logan watched as the girl put the weasel into a cage and walk over to place it on the counter. After that, she helped Logan pick out some food and other necessities, and Logan paid for all of it. It was fairly expensive, but Patton didn’t need to know that.

He took the weasel and the other items back to his car and began the half-hour drive to Patton’s house.

\------

Patton knew it wouldn’t take long for Roman to arrive, which meant that gave him enough time to suffer through the stairs once again. He slowly got up, trying to keep his balance as he headed toward the door. His weasel laid on top of his head, which was the only reason why Patton was being so careful this time.

Once he reached the steps, he looked down and automatically felt a million times worse. He managed to ignore the sick feeling in his stomach and held onto the rail as he slowly made his way down. George was no help.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs felt like it took forever. He really didn’t want to have to unlock the door when Roman arrived, so he just unlocked it now before laying on the couch in his igloo of pillows from before, this time with George. 

Some time passed in which Patton just laid there with George on his stomach, completely unaware of Logan’s plan. After a good ten or so minutes, Roman had arrived. He had brought some things that he thought would be necessary for helping Patton. When asked if he knew what he was even doing, Roman said, “...sure!”

Probably not a good sign.

Roman was sitting on the couch beside Patton, staring at the… rodent on his head. Roman was never really fond of the thing, and George didn’t really like him either.

“So how long do you plan on staying?” Patton mumbled.

“Until you’re better of course! Honestly, if I left you to suffer alone then that would make me look pretty bad, wouldn’t it?” Roman took his phone out and started scrolling through it, “How did you get back here anyway? You didn’t seriously walk all the way here, did you?” 

Patton nodded, “Actually, I did,” For right now, he ignored the fact that Roman was going to be staying for a while.

“Are you kidding?! That’s the stupidest thing you could have done! You do realize that, right? I’m glad you made it home okay, but please use some common sense next time?”

This really was not something Patton needed right now. Out of everything that he could be hearing, Roman’s scolding was the worst option. He honestly couldn’t help his annoyance with this whole hangover thing and now Roman... Patton mumbled quietly to himself, “If it means getting away from you, I’d do it again.”

Roman’s head whipped up from his phone with a slightly hurt expression. He obviously heard. Roman tried to remain calm for Patton’s sake, “Okay, look -- I’m trying to be nice cause I know you have a hangover and everything, but you are _not_ making this easy,” Roman continued to look at Patton. He assumed that Patton was only saying all of this cause he was in a bad mood.

“You literally showed up here uninvited, I don’t see how that’s being nice,” Patton pointed out. He could tell he was getting on Roman’s nerves.

“Yeah, well, you should feel lucky I even showed up at all. Right now you could be suffering by yourself with this hangover,” Roman said indignantly.

By now, Patton had no clue if it was just the hangover that was making him this annoyed, or if he’d finally snapped. Or at least cracked a little. Still, he sure as heck wasn’t stopping, “Well, did I ask you to come? I don’t really think--”

He was cut off by Roman, “Pat, you’re really making me frustrated right now. So it would be nice if you would stop berating me for trying to help--” Roman was cut off by Patton grabbing a pillow and hitting him with it. It wasn’t a hard hit, but Roman still stood up and glared at Patton.

Meanwhile, Logan had just arrived. He parked his car in the driveway of Patton’s house. He has been here a few times, mainly just to drop Roman off before he got his own car, but Logan had never been inside. Before last night, Logan didn’t even know Patton had a pet.

Though, that was a good thing considering the pet was illegal. Wouldn’t be great for people to know about it.

Logan climbed out of the car and put on the backpack he had brought. Inside was the food for the new pet as well as some cat toys. The girl in the shop recommended them for the weasel, considering the fact that they’re predators and typically enjoyed cat toys as a substitute for hunting.

He grabbed the cage out of the passenger seat and looked at the weasel through the bars. He didn’t know what Patton was going to be naming him, so Logan didn’t call him anything at this point. And, despite his slight fear of holding a wild animal, Logan was calm. The animal was staring up at him with dark, black eyes. No growling, no hate evident. That was nice, at least.

Logan made his way to the door and knocked with his free hand.

Patton and Roman both looked away from each other, turning their gaze to the door and temporarily forgetting their small argument. Patton wasn’t really expecting anyone else to show up, and neither was Roman.

Turning his attention back to Patton, Roman asked, annoyance still evident in his voice, “Well, aren’t you gonna get it?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so, this whole weasel thing. Not completely accurate with the whole permit thing, they're basically just banned in most places, but we wanted to give Patton a reason to own weasels, so here we are.  
> As I keep saying in the comments, this is the good part. It's gonna get just a little better before it gets agonizingly worse. You'll know it when it happens.  
> :)


	12. Chapter 12

Patton really wanted to argue about getting the door. His head still hurt like hell, and Roman was here to help, wasn’t he? At least that’s what Roman was insisting he was here for. Still, Patton let out a small sigh, ignoring his annoyance for the moment. Getting angry would help no one.

Slowly, he stood up, using the couch for support. Patton made his way to the door with a slight frown on his face. He couldn’t help being upset with Roman, especially since he just sat back down on the couch, looking at his phone again! Patton couldn’t help the second sigh that escaped him, this one used as a way to calm himself down. Roman just-- ugh, this was infuriating.

He took another second to calm himself down before putting on a slightly fake smile and opening the door, but the smile dropped and his expression turned to one of curiosity as he saw Logan, “Uh.. hey? What are you doing here?” Patton didn’t notice the cage since he was a little dizzy from walking and also looking up at Logan.

“Well, I came to… apologize for last night,” Logan wasn’t really sure how to go about this. He wasn’t much of a gift-giving person, so this was new for him. Logan waited for a response, but a second later he heard some quiet, angry grumbling in the background and peeked his head around the doorframe to see Roman on the couch. Some nervousness entered Logan’s voice as he asked, “Oh. Am I interrupting something?”

Patton glanced back at Roman before turning to Logan, saying quietly “No, it’s fine…”

When he heard the question, Roman turned to see who was actually at the door, and saw Logan. Roman didn’t say anything about it, just gave a small wave. Afterwards, he turned back to his phone, but saw George staring up at him with beady black eyes from his peripheral vision. That little thing sure was creepy.

“Uh…” Patton spoke to Logan quietly, giving him a weak smile, “I don’t really think this is a good time right now…” Patton really didn’t want Roman to hear, but obviously he could. To Roman it seemed like Patton  _ was _ acting a bit suspiciously. So he got up from the couch and walked over to Patton. Oh no, George was following him. Roman cringed a little as he looked down at the little creature. 

Ignoring it for now, he wrapped his arm around Patton’s waist as he was face-to-face with Logan, asking him, “What’s that?” when he noticed the cage.

Logan looked down at it, “Well, I uh--” Logan had to think of a way to make this look less suspicious, “Well, I was talking to Virgil, and he reminded me of Patton’s pet weasel, which made me remember that weasels are actually illegal to own. So I--”

“What?” Patton’s eyes widened slightly. He looked behind him at George, who was sitting on the floor staring up at Roman. Patton asked George, “You’re illegal!? Why didn’t you tell me?” George just calmly walked away and climbed up the stairs.

Patton shook his head disappointedly, “I can’t believe I've been keeping an illegal immigrant.”

And then Patton’s joking was interrupted by Roman rolling his eyes and saying, “I did say you shouldn’t be keeping a rat like that so close, and now I just have a better reason to say it.” Patton looked up at Roman with a slightly sad expression.

“He is  _ not _ a rat, stop calling him that,” Patton sounded slightly offended on George’s behalf.

Logan started talking again, quickly trying to diffuse the situation, “Well, because I obviously do not want you to get in trouble for this, I got a permit to own a weasel… Technically that means they belong to me, but you can own them and just say they belong to me, for legal reasons. Also, since I was already there…” Logan held the cage up to Patton’s eye level, and Roman had to bend over slightly to see inside, but once they both locked eyes with the small creature, they had two very different reactions.

Patton immediately beamed, letting out a small gasp. He thought this little baby might as well be made out of gold, that’s how precious it was, “Oh my gosh, it’s so cute!” Looking into the little creature’s eyes, Patton forgot why he was even upset in the first place. And this one was basically the color of snow, such a pretty color. Except for a small grey spot on its forehead. It was adorable! He giggled as he continued to look at it, giving the weasel a small wave, “Hiii!”

On the other hand, Roman rolled his eyes and then stood up straight again, giving Logan a ‘look what you did’ sort of look. He sighed as he looked down at Patton, “You really don’t need another one of those things. One is enough and you can barely take care of that. Also this one looks weird…” Roman was saying these things, but mostly out of an obligation to. It was really cute seeing Patton this happy, but he really  _ didn’t _ need another pet.

Also Roman was still a little angry.

Patton continued to look at the animal while talking to Roman, “It doesn’t look weird, it’s cute! Look at it!”

As Roman continued to look a little unsure of all of this, Logan just felt awkward. Giving a gift to Patton while Roman was here wasn’t a very enjoyable experience, and he hoped that Roman wouldn’t be too upset by it, considering how possessive he is. Hopefully Logan’s status as Roman’s best friend would keep Roman from getting too angry or possessive right now.

Still, it was probably a very good thing that Logan was here right now. Patton and Roman being alone is not ideal at all anymore. It never had been, according to Patton’s words from last night.

So Logan decided to fill the role that Roman was supposed to take: the supportive one. He turned away from Patton’s bright smile, a sight which was a wonder to see after so long, and faced Roman, “I think Patton is responsible enough to support another animal. He is very caring, after all.”

“Okay, you are not helping,” Roman mumbled to Logan. Honestly, Roman thought these animals were kinda gross. To him, they looked like very long rats. As if he didn’t see one big rat named Remus every day.

Patton ignored Roman’s words, looking back up to Logan, “Thanks, Logan! It’s a fantastic gift!” Somehow his smile was even brighter than before, and Logan couldn’t help but give a small smile back. Patton really did love the gift! Still, he couldn’t help but say, “You didn’t have to.”

_ Yeah, he  _ didn’t _ have to _ , Roman thought. He was holding back this weird feeling of jealousy that definitely shouldn’t be here right now. This was Logan, his best friend since he could barely even walk. What the hell was even going on?

“Of course I did not  _ have _ to, but I wanted to,” Logan said, focused entirely on Patton. Logan was unaware of Roman’s growing mixture of rage, confusion, jealousy, and slight sadness. He ignored the daggers that Roman was glaring into his skull, “Oh!” he suddenly remembered. “While I was there I got some food for the weasels, and the girl at the counter also recommended that I get some toys. Did you know weasels enjoy cat toys?”

Logan couldn’t really contain his smile as he told this to Patton. He enjoyed learning new things like this, even if he wasn’t much of an animal person. Wild rodents enjoy playing with cat toys? It’s fascinating.

“I actually didn’t know that! I guess that explains why George acts so much like a cat, sleeping on my face,” Patton looked back at the little weasel in the cage and said, “I’m gonna call you Fred, okay?” He couldn’t help the gleeful smile that spread across his face as the little baby blinked up at him. Adorable!

“You come up with the strangest names,” Roman said, not really getting the connection to the Weasleys at first. It would probably have to be explained to him later… And Roman realized neither of them were listening to him… “I’m gonna get a snack,” he said angrily. He made his way to the kitchen.

Patton turned to watch Roman walk away, and it was obvious that some tension left his shoulders as he let out a small, relieved sigh. He really didn’t need all of this negativity right now. Fred and Logan were a nice distraction, though.

Finally, Patton stepped away from the door and let Logan inside. Once the door was shut and Logan heard Roman’s footsteps fade away, he turned to Patton and asked quietly, “Are you doing alright? With… you know…” He gestured toward the direction that Roman had gone. Logan didn’t want to pry too much, but since Patton had confided in him, he felt the need to make sure Patton was okay.

Of course, Patton could defend himself. Logan could tell, very early on after meeting him all those months ago, that Patton was a very mentally tough person who was very sure of what he believed in. Still, Roman’s loud personality, his egoism and eccentricities were hard to fight. Logan knew that from personal experience.

Patton looked up at Logan before redirecting his attention to the cage. He nodded, “Yeah, everything’s fine…” He was mumbling, keeping his voice quiet. It was because he didn’t want Roman to hear, but also because he wasn’t completely telling the truth.

He didn’t want to mention how bad things could have gone if Logan didn’t show up.

“Do you want me to stay?” Logan asked suddenly, sincerely. It wasn’t something he even expected himself to ask, but he thought Patton might need him here. Based on the expression that Patton had tried to keep hidden by looking at Fred, Logan could tell that Patton was worried and stressed out. He had been smiling before, but the negative emotions only became evident once Roman was mentioned.

Patton had definitely not expected Logan to ask that. When Logan said those words, Patton stopped trying to hide his face, looking up at Logan and actually deciding whether or not to let Logan stay. If he did stay, Roman would either be really annoyed and difficult or fake being happy for as long as he could.

Then again, if Logan left, Patton had no clue what would happen.

“You don’t have to,” He said quietly, trying to be sincere despite his obvious worry, “It’s Saturday so I’m sure you probably have other things to do…” Besides, Patton couldn’t be selfish. Other people had lives.

Logan could see the fear on Patton’s face, almost completely hidden. He didn’t know exactly what Patton was thinking, but he could tell it was bad. Logan had no clue what was going on before he arrived, how it seemed like Roman was genuinely really angry. Patton knew that Roman was probably about to start yelling if it hadn’t been for the interruption.

“I have nothing else to do today. I would be happy to stay,” Logan said, looking down at Patton with a genuine, caring expression. Realizing yet again that he was showing quite a lot of emotion… Logan didn’t stop himself this time. Patton needed reassurance. 

And then Logan couldn’t help himself when he glanced in the direction that Roman had gone. His expression was difficult to read. Anger, mostly, but also restraint. He just  _ knew _ something bad had been going on.

Still, Logan would happily be here to protect Patton from being left alone with Roman. It seemed like those two being left alone was the worst possible option, so, with Virgil’s help, the two of them could make sure the couple was never left alone together for too long. For as long as Patton needed people beside him, they would be there.

And Patton was so relieved. He would never admit it, but he was so glad that Logan was willing to stay. He thought it was sweet that Logan would do things like this, even though he clearly didn’t need to. Still, Patton needed to ask, “Are you sure he won’t get on your nerves or anything? If you don’t want to stay, you could just leave at any time. I’d understand.”

Now that Logan knew, Patton was worried that Roman would end up ticking him off. That would not end very well.

“Oh, Roman will definitely get on my nerves,” Logan said honestly, “But I will not make a scene. I promise. I just… I’m afraid to leave you alone with him.”

Patton was quiet for a moment, not expecting Logan to actually say that he was worried. Logan never really told anyone how he felt. Though, he had done that last night when they spoke. Maybe he was getting more used to it? At first, Patton didn’t even know what to say, “Uh…” He gave Logan a soft, genuine smile before saying, “Thanks, Logan… I really appreciate it.”

Logan nodded, finally moving away from the door after smiling back at Patton. He was happy that Patton was allowing him to help in any way he could.

Sitting down on the couch, Logan placed the cage on the floor. He took off his backpack, emptying it of the food and toys he had bought. And then he leaned down and opened the cage for Fred. The weasel began sniffing around, looking at the floor and surrounding area with immense curiosity. Patton and Logan both watched as the little creature began to roam around and explore the living room. Patton already loved the little baby.

And suddenly he remembered that he never introduced George! Turning toward the stairs, he made his way up while saying, “I’ll be right back!”

Patton seemed to be feeling a little better, so the stairs were easier to climb than before. He went to go find the little rascal, knowing that George was most likely hiding in his room somewhere.

Meanwhile, Roman was sitting in the kitchen eating some sliced cucumbers that he found in the fridge. The snack thing had been an excuse to go calm down somewhere else but… he was already here so why not? He had calmed down, though, but was still a little annoyed that Patton now had two of these little rat things.

Roman had also seen Logan come in. He assumed that Logan was just here to give Patton the stuff for the weasel. Surely he would leave soon.

Patton came back down the stairs with George sitting on top of his head, messing around in his hair again. Patton was beaming, excited to introduce the two. He gently lifted George from his head and placed him on the floor next to Fred. Both boys watched happily as the two weasels sniffed each other with curiosity.

“You know, before today, I’ve never interacted with many animals, especially not a weasel,” Logan said, “I didn’t even know you had one before you mentioned it last night.”

“They’re not too much trouble, at least mine isn’t. I’ve had him for a couple of months, actually. I just usually never bring it up,” Patton smiled as he explained. He had received George as a gift for his birthday. It was a late gift from his mom, but late or not, he still loves it.

After the initial curiosity, George didn’t pay much attention to the other weasel. He looked up at Patton, then at Logan. He mostly just stared. This was the main reason why Roman didn’t like the weasel at all, it just stares into your soul.

Logan nodded as he listened to Patton, but turned his attention to George when he noticed the staring. Logan kind of stared back, speaking as he looked at the creature, “He seems very well-trained. And quite adorable,” Logan added on that last part as a small smile crossed his face.

George continued to stare at Logan for a few more seconds before going over to Patton and climbing up his leg. Patton giggled, picking George up and placing him on his head, “He’s very strange at times, but he’s my son and I love him anyway.”

As Patton looked at Fred and wondered whether or not he liked climbing, too, Logan glanced in the direction that Roman had gone. It was quite a while ago that he left, so Logan wondered why he hadn’t come back yet. Then again, it was a good thing that Roman wasn’t here, at least for the moment.

He would come back inevitably, though.

Walking over to Fred, Patton gently tried to pick him up, but he began squirming and hissing, which scared Patton and he ended up dropping Fred. Patton let out a heartbroken whimper, “Baby, no!”

Fred got back on his feet and ran to the corner of the living room. Patton was a terrible parent.

Seeing Fred hiss, run, and then huddle himself in the corner like that was not a very nice sight. Logan looked up at Patton with a somewhat guilty expression. He didn’t expect the pet to act this way. So, Logan reached for the bag of food on the ground, grabbing a piece of meat (he had no clue what it even was… ham, maybe?) and walked over to the weasel, holding the food out to the scared animal as he kneeled down in its sight, but slightly to the side so as not to corner it.

Fred slowly approached Logan, grabbed the food and backed away slowly, staring up at him. At least it didn’t seem too angry anymore. Fred ate in peace.

Patton took George off of his head to hold him in his arms. At least this one didn’t reject his love. He figured maybe Fred needed more time to get used to everything first. Then he will give Fred his love! Though it was kind of nice to see Logan act like that, just to get a weasel to eat. He was still just sitting there, watching Fred eat with a small smile. It was… nice.

“I’ll be right back,” Patton said as he cradled George in his arms. He thought that maybe now was a good time to get George some water, and if Fred wanted to join, he could.

Obviously, as Patton’s pet, George only got bottled water instead of tap water. If their roles were switched, he knows George would do the same for him. He walked into the kitchen to get the water.

As Patton left the room, Logan stood up, looking in the direction that Patton had gone. It probably led to the kitchen, and thus, Roman. Logan sat down on the couch as he faintly heard Roman’s voice.

Roman didn’t even bother looking up from his phone as he heard Patton enter, “Is he leaving yet? And please don’t say you’re actually planning on keeping another one of those things.”

“No, actually. I said he could stay. And yes, I am keeping Fred,” Patton said quietly as he opened the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water, “If you have a problem with it, you can always leave.”

Roman rolled his eyes, “You’re doing this on purpose, I know you are. It isn’t funny.”

Fred’s ears perked up at the noise, and Logan kept his focus on the small animal that had now moved to the middle of the room. It was a good enough distraction from what he was hearing. Logan could really only hear Roman’s side of the conversation, since he was so much louder than Patton. The tone of Roman’s voice, as well as his words, pissed Logan off.

He really wanted Logan gone so badly? Logan legitimately had a hard time thinking of why Roman would even want him gone. Did he not trust him? They’ve been friends for ages, and one single nice action towards Patton sets Roman off… 

Logan had to take a few deep breaths to calm himself. He promised he wouldn’t cause a scene.

“I’m not doing anything on purpose, you just love having a bad attitude,” Patton spoke as he continued to move around the kitchen, placing George down and grabbing a bowl for the water, all while avoiding eye contact with Roman. His phone was getting in the way of eye contact, anyway. Patton poured some water into the bowl and watched George, again keeping his focus off of Roman.

Roman chuckled, “You’re lucky someone’s here. You’re really getting on my last nerve, babe.”

“Funny, I could say the same thing!” Patton said with a fake smile. Once George was done drinking, Patton picked him back up and placed him on his head.

Finally standing up from his spot on a stool near the counter, Roman walked over to Patton, clearly frustrated, “I am  _ not _ kidding anymore, knock it off with your attitude. It’s not funny.”

Patton didn’t say anything, instead glaring up at Roman with complete and utter defiance, despite the weasel perched on his head. Patton really wanted to speak up, but instead he just walked back out without saying another word. Roman followed him.

Since Patton had raised his voice, Logan was able to hear both sides of the argument. He sat on the couch, looking at the ground in silence. He was glad that Patton spoke up, at least as much as he could, but that didn’t stop Logan’s growing worry.

He had heard the faint sound of a threat in Roman’s words, ‘You’re lucky someone’s here…’ That isn’t something you say to anyone. Even as a joke, saying things like that… especially when you are a strong, tall person talking to your short, small, and defenseless significant other? It was genuinely disgusting.

When the couple walked into the room, Logan could only look at Patton. He avoided making eye contact with Roman for as long as he could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh and if you think this is the bad part...  
> nope.  
> :)


	13. Chapter 13

The atmosphere in the living room wasn’t exactly pleasant. Everyone was silent as Patton stared at the ground, avoiding eye contact with both of the other boys in the room. The silence lasted as Patton quietly made his way over to Logan, glancing back at Roman before lifting George from off of his head and lowering him to the couch, next to Logan. That didn’t last long though, since George immediately jumped off of the couch and ran over to Fred, who was still sitting in the middle of the room, watching all of the people who were being weirdly silent.

At first, the two weasels went from curiously sniffing one another to doing what seemed like playing. It was actually very cute. It made Patton smile just a little bit.

Wait. They’re biting each other.

Roman made his way over to the two weasels, who were jumping around the living room, and tried to block them from climbing up the wall. Roman knows plenty about this family and he might as well try to keep Patton’s mom from flipping out at any damage these little nuisances might cause.

“George, knock it off,” Patton demanded. In return, George and Fred paused momentarily for George to make a strange noise while staring at Patton, and Patton responded with, “Don’t yell at me!” He was treating this animal as if it was his child.

“Do not worry, Patton. I believe they are just playing? They are predators so biting while playing would not be unexpected. Besides, it is more beneficial and provides a better environment for most animals when they have another one of their species to play with,” A second after realizing he didn’t really know anything about weasels  _ specifically _ , Logan added, “Though research would most likely be beneficial.”

Although a bit anxious, Patton decided to trust Logan on this. Still, “It doesn’t give George the right to yell at me--”

“It sounds like they have rabies. Or they’re choking on something,” Roman interrupted. He wasn’t really wrong. But now that made Patton think… all animals growl while playing, right?

“Well,” Logan said, trying to ignore Roman’s interruption of Patton yet again, “Weasels are, like I said, predators. They’re wild animals, and so growling also does not seem too unexpected. They get along better with each other than other animals, and do not attack humans unless provoked.”

Logan decided that it would probably be best if he didn’t mention the fact that George seemed to be growling more at Patton than Fred.

After hearing what Logan said, Roman decided that was another thing he could add to the list of reasons why he should most definitely stay away from these little guys. He will also remind himself to never touch either of them.

“Well, I’m not raising my children to attack random strangers. We are lovers not fighters in this household!” Patton crossed his arms.

Logan let a small smile cross his face at Patton’s words. You could never change biology, so keeping the weasels from killing small prey would be impossible, but Patton's insistence on pacifism was cute, so Logan decided to ignore his retort.

Seeing the smile, Patton perked up a little at the fact that there was finally something good going on. A much wider smile was returned by Patton, and he decided to continue, since it was lightening the mood, “Well, if they ever have any trouble with each other, then we shall get in a circle and talk about it calmly. Like an intervention!” Patton paused, but instantly perked up and let out a small gasp as he thought about something. He spoke quietly, with amazement, “...Do people sell tiny chairs??”

“How long until they stop?” Roman asked, looking down at the two weasels who were still running around, jumping over one another, “I wouldn’t be surprised if one of them lost an eye.”

Patton gasped and turned to look at Roman, “The only eye they shall be losing is the I in team!”

After Roman rolled his eyes and Logan stifled his mild anger at Roman yet  _ again _ , all three of the boys watched the weasels for the remainder of their “fight.” It only lasted another minute, Fred retreating and going to sit in the corner of the room, still not completely comfortable with the area yet. Both of the weasels seemed out of breath, but happy nonetheless? George walked toward Patton and climbed up his leg, a proud victor.

Patton lightly clapped for George before picking him up and cradling him, “Good job, baboo,” Patton congratulated him, “Both of you are gonna get treats because you both did great and had fun!” And Patton’s smile was immediately ruined by Roman speaking again.

“Shouldn’t George only get treats? He won.” Roman sounded like he genuinely had no clue why two animals who were playing and not fighting shouldn’t get unfair treatment because one of them supposedly “won.”

“This family shall believe in equality, Roman,” Patton said, smiling down at George. He was obviously trying to make light of the situation again.

Rolling his eyes again, Roman looked over at Logan and said, “Just so you know, I’m not a part of that. Weasel children are not my thing,” He glanced in the direction of Fred, “I think he’s in the corner of shame.”

“I believe he is,” Logan said, nodding. Might as well try to talk to Roman, despite his previous anger. 

Logan watched as Fred moved out of the corner to head into the kitchen, mainly to get away from the noise. And even though he wanted to keep his anger down, Logan couldn’t help but make a slight joke at Roman previous statement, “Also, who said the weasel children were yours? Technically, I have custody over them, legally.”

As soon as those words left Logan’s mouth, the realization hit Roman and he said, “No wait nevermind they’re my kids get your grubby hands away from them,” He tried walking towards George and Patton, reaching out for George, but immediately got hissed at, and he held his hand up to his chest in a fake gesture of offense. He also gasped. And then he hissed back.

Patton giggled a little bit, “Don’t provoke him, Roman. He might just bite you.” George curled himself up in Patton’s arms, staying there since Patton was obviously his real dad.

Logan had also let out a small laugh at Roman’s reaction. As much as he hated Roman right now, he was still his friend. And his dumb, self-centered reaction was exactly what Logan had expected. 

Deep down, Logan knew that Roman was a good person. After all, a good person is all that Logan saw for  _ years _ , and what he still sees now. Still, right now, he was more concerned for Patton. Roman has always been difficult, especially when it came to possessiveness over friends and love interests. Logan knew for a fact that this whole situation was one of those scenarios, in which Roman is insanely protective. Because Patton… he’s incredible. He is emotionally strong and he can fight back any amount of scorn with an incredible array of kind words and actions. He is generous and caring and kind to everyone he’s ever crossed paths with.

So it’s obvious why Roman would want to keep him. It’s also obvious why that would be difficult, because Patton is also very determined. He knows that this relationship is bad, and no matter what, Logan knew that Patton would get out of it eventually.

Patton and Roman were very similar, but had just enough specific differences to be incompatible. Patton would get on Roman’s nerves when he would talk back for what Roman thought was no reason, and Roman got on Patton’s nerves when he made his usual jokes, the jokes that are usually at the expense of another person. A relationship can be bad without either of the people involved being a bad person.

As Logan thought all of that within a few seconds, George had fallen asleep in Patton’s arms, and Roman still looked a little bit pouty at not being treated nicely by George. He had his arms crossed as he said, “I’m a semi-parent and I deserve respect in this house,” He actually seemed mildly upset, even though he didn’t like the weasels.

“You are their stepdad, obviously,” Logan interjected as he shrugged.

All of their attention was back on Fred as he quietly walked back into the room. After some deliberation, Fred walked over and cautiously climbed up onto the couch, sitting on Logan’s lap. His usually calm expression suddenly lit up with a gleeful and surprised smile, and Logan looked bath and forth between Fred and Patton. He was actually pretty amazed that Fred chose to be near him.

Logan started softly petting the weasel, but when he looked up, he noticed that Patton was smiling at him and Fred. That made Logan’s own smile grow a little bit more.

Roman, then, decided to continue speaking, “We’re sending the kids to military school when they’re old enough,” and he sounded dead serious.

“Ha! I think the frick frack tic tac paddy whack the heck not!” Patton also sounded serious, somehow even while saying such a ridiculous sentence. Patton did not like that idea. No one takes his babies.

Continuing to pet Fred, Logan thought about how it was interesting that he typically disliked animals, but these two weasels brought him a lot of joy. It was strange. He ignored that for now and decided to contribute to the strange conversation about the lives of their weasel children, “So, are you homeschooling them, then?”

The two of them turned to Logan and answered at the same time, Patton saying yes and Roman saying no.

“You didn’t even acknowledge my children until now,” Patton stated, because he already knew what was best.

“Well now I love them, and I think that I should decide what’s best for this family since  _ you _ think homeschooling is a good idea,” Roman sounded indignant.

Patton lifted George into the air, waking him up, “George what do you think? You wanna be homeschooled, right?” George just blinked in response.

“No, he wants to meet other weasels--  _ why am I arguing about this? _ ” Roman placed a hand over his forehead.

Logan let out a small laugh, “Yes, Roman, why  _ are _ you arguing about it?” He knew that taunting Roman wasn’t really the best thing to do, but who cares? It’s just a conversation about weasel children and their completely imaginary education.

Roman actually had no clue how he was supposed to answer. These weren’t even his kids. “I--” He needed to think long and hard about this, “I need tea,” he got up to go get a cup.

Patton was laughing at Roman’s reaction. He knew that he and Logan probably broke him, “Oh my gosh--” He said as his laughter calmed down, “I’m crying I swear I can’t breathe--”

Logan smiled at Patton from his spot on the couch. It had been a while since he’d seen such a genuine smile. For the past week or so, Patton had been so quiet, and then last night he was crying his eyes out and then was drunk out of his mind, so seeing his freckled face light up again was probably one of the best things Logan has seen for a long time.

Once he calmed down, Patton sat on the floor and looked back at George saying to him, “Don’t worry, I'll make the decisions for your future,” And then he looked back at Logan, noticing that Fred was still sitting on his lap.

Patton smiled at the picture of the oh-so professional Logan petting a wild animal that was sitting on his lap, and giggled, “They must really like you, huh?” As he spoke, he took George back into his arms.

Logan shrugged, “I suppose so. I have never really had a pet before. Except for a dog when I was five years old. It was more of my parents’ dog anyway,” After speaking, he looked back down at Fred and continued to pet him.

The short few seconds of silence were interrupted by Roman coming back into the living room with a cup filled with tea. He was still contemplating why he even bothered to care about the weasels so suddenly, “Don’t ever let me fight over those string rats ever again.”

Patton patted the top of George’s head and said, “He doesn’t mean that…”

“He most likely does, honestly.” Logan didn’t want to admit it, but he already loved Fred. Definitely more than Roman did. He was proud to call the weasels his children.

Letting out a small gasp, Patton hovered his hands over George’s ears and said to Logan, “Well don’t tell him that!” He was smiling, obviously enjoying the joking that was going on. Certainly better than the arguing that was taking place before Logan arrived.

“Wooowww. See, even I have the nerve to at least say it to myself,” Roman said.

“You literally said it out loud in front of  _ both _ of them,” Patton pointed out.

Roman was silent for a moment before saying, “That’s different,” and he took a sip from his cup of tea.

“How did you even find the tea bags? I hid them specifically so you wouldn’t use them all in one day.” Patton’s question was just given a shrug in response.

“You do not hide things from the queen of tea. I need like-- one of those pink fluffy things that’s like a scarf but isn’t a scarf. I need one of those so that I could go around town as the queen of tea and show people I’m more important than their rent.”

“Sure you are, Roman,” Logan said sarcastically.

“Exactly! I’m so important that people shouldn’t even need to be reminded,” Roman looked over at Patton and said, “You know what I’m saying?”

Patton simply nodded and said, “Yup, I know exactly what you’re saying.” He didn't. “And stop drinking all of my tea!” He stood up to go to the kitchen so that he could hide the box again.

Logan continued to pet Fred, looking down at him rather than at Roman. The past few minutes have been fun, but then again, Patton had been there to be a mediator. Now that it was just Logan and Roman, Logan wanted nothing more than for everything to stay completely silent. As much as he still thought of Roman as a friend, anything Roman could say right now could either be good, or be really,  _ really _ bad.

Already knowing that Patton was too short to hide the box in any place Roman couldn’t reach, Roman decided to just wait for Patton. It shouldn’t take too long. He leaned against the wall as he looked across the room at George, who was sitting on the floor near the couch. George was once again staring at him. No way in hell was he gonna take another look at that thing.

He decided it was either stare back into this rat’s cold, dark eyes, or speak up about what’s been bothering him. So he looked over at Logan and asked, “So when are you leaving?”

Upon hearing the words, Logan sucked in a breath. Exactly what Logan  _ didn’t _ want to hear. Oh well. He decided to answer honestly (in a way that minimized how much offense Roman would take to it) and said, “I’ll stay until Patton asked me to leave. This is his house, after all.”

“Well Patton is way too nice to ask someone to just leave, so there’s where the problem is… I mean, you did already give him the other rat and I’m pretty sure that’s all you came here to do. That’s why I’m asking.” Bullshit. Bullshit and he knows it.

Roman was finished with his tea. He hadn’t finished drinking it but… he really didn’t feel like it. Something felt off to him and he’d rather just talk without a stupid cup in his hands. He placed the cup on a nearby side table, but he continued to lean against the wall.

After Roman was done speaking and placing his cup down, Logan let out a sigh and said, “I believe Patton is assertive enough to tell people what he wants,” He didn’t even mean for it to sound passive aggressive, but it did. It was the truth, but it may have also been a slight jab towards Roman. Patton was definitely determined enough to get out of the relationship, no matter how long it took.

The room was quiet for a few seconds, but the air was tense. Roman felt the tone in Logan’s voice. He felt that, and he didn’t like it.

“Yes, well, if he was then he most certainly would have you to leave a while ago… so…” He gave a fake smile towards Logan.

Logan looked up from Fred, landing his gaze on Roman and finally letting his glare show. His tone was cold, “Alright. We will ask him if he wants me gone once he returns.”

“Oh, well why wait, hm?” Roman looked over to the kitchen and then called for Patton, “Patton! Can you come here, please?” A few seconds later, they heard a quiet call back from Patton telling them to hold on, and Roman turned back to Logan with his arms crossed and a slightly triumphant expression on his face, “I’m sure we’ll have our answer soon.”

It was honestly ridiculous that he was acting like he would win this. Patton wasn’t even here yet and already Roman felt like Patton was going to agree with him and kick Logan out. That, plus the fact that Roman was bossing Patton around  _ yet again _ , was making it difficult for Logan to hold in his anger. Still, he didn’t want to make a scene. He promised Patton he wouldn’t.

Couldn’t Roman just wait? Couldn’t he respect Patton’s individuality rather than expecting him to bow to every whim he had? Maybe Logan was exaggerating. He couldn’t really help that.

Logan continued to glare at Roman, “I’m sure we will, but first…” Logan raised his voice to talk to Patton, looking in the direction of the kitchen, “Take your time, we can wait as long as you need.” He turned back to Roman, keeping an unimpressed expression.

Roman suppressed his urge to throw the closest thing at Logan. Mostly because the closest thing besides a fragile cup that belonged to Patton was a weasel.

Finally placing the box of tea bags away, Patton climbed down from the counter that he climbed to reach. He walked out of the kitchen and looked at the two of them, instantly sensing the tension, “Yeah?” He asked.

Instantly, Roman turned his attention to Patton, “Great, you’re here. Would you please tell this nerd that you would like him to leave?” At least he said please.

Logan stayed silent, waiting for Patton’s response. He tried to convey with his expression that Patton didn’t have to listen to Roman. As usual, Roman was being assertive, trying to passive-aggressively convince Patton that kicking Logan out was what he wanted. That it was what Patton wanted.

He hoped that Patton would start listening to himself rather than his boyfriend for once.

Patton stared at the two for a moment, regretting leaving them alone. Of course he didn’t want Logan to leave, “Well… I don’t really see why he would need to lea--”

“Patton, for once just listen to me the first time, okay?” Roman interrupted, “Tell the string bean to get lost… like, right now.” He wasn’t asking anymore.

Logan was watching the whole conversation, obviously, and when Roman was demanding that Patton tell him to leave, Logan couldn’t help it when his mildly concerned expression turned more into a scowl.

Not another word was spoken for a good few seconds as Patton stood there. He looked at Logan before turning his gaze back over to Roman, “… I don’t want him to.” 

When those words left Patton’s mouth, Logan’s expression softened and he let a small smile cross his face. Patton was getting stronger, he was fighting back. It was incredible. But Logan was still scared for Roman’s response.

Roman calmly stood up from his leaning position against the wall and walked the short distance to Patton. He turned to look at Logan before saying, “Excuse us for a second,” and then he grabbed Patton’s wrist and began leading him to the kitchen. 

As soon as he felt Roman wrap his hand around his wrist, Patton tried tugging back, “Let go, knock it off,” He didn’t try much, considering Roman was a lot stronger than him anyway. Might as well just go to the kitchen anyway.

Once they both reached the kitchen, Roman let go. He turned to face Patton, “Are you insane?” He tried speaking quietly so that Logan wouldn’t hear, “Patton, since when are you so rude? I just want him gone. He’s been here way too long!” Patton was being completely silent, rubbing his wrist instead of responding. Roman said, “I’m talking to you,” And waited for an answer, but still got nothing.

Logan bunched his hands into fists and placed them at his sides against the couch. Obviously, he could hear everything Roman was saying, since the kitchen wasn’t very far away. He took a deep breath in. He wanted to go after them, to somehow stop Roman. But Patton could handle himself. He could deal with this. Logan would not intervene unless Patton directly asked for it.

Roman knew that Patton wasn’t gonna start talking unless he started. Patton wasn’t even looking at him! “Okay fine. You don’t wanna talk, whatever. But you need to tell him to leave, now.”

“Well I don’t want him to leave. If you don’t like him being here then you could always just go home!”

“Seriously? You’re really gonna start this right now?” Roman sounded exhausted and pissed off, “He was only supposed to give you the weasel and then go. I’m the one who’s supposed to stay here and help you with your hangover and make you smile, not Logan,” Trying to show how serious he was about this, Roman tilted Patton’s head up to look him in the eye, but instead Patton grabbing Roman’s wrist and pulled it away from his chin.

“Don’t touch me,” Patton said, glaring up at Roman.

Ignoring that, Roman continued on about Logan, “Why don’t you want him to leave, hm? Do you like him more than me?”

Patton shook his head slightly and said, “N-no, I--”

Cutting him off yet again, Roman continued to ask more questions, “What, am I just not good enough to be around? Do you hate me?”

“No! That’s n-not it at all, I swear!” Patton didn’t want Roman to think that! He could never hate someone, even if he did dislike Roman at the moment. He could never hate him.

“Then tell him to leave, Patton,” Roman’s tone shifted from mildly hurt anger to pleading, “If you love me then you’ll get him out of here, alright?”

Patton stared at him, unsure of what to do. It took another few seconds before Roman started walking back to the living room, and Patton followed. As they were walking, Roman slowed down to be in step with Patton before wrapping his arm around his waist. Patton was just staring at the ground.

“It’s settled, he wants you out,” Roman said to Logan.

Obviously having heard the whole conversation, Logan was seething with rage. It had always been difficult for him to express his emotions. It was rare. But as Roman and Patton came back into the room, the anger on his face could be seen from light years away by a blind man.

He barely held onto his false sense of calm as he looked away from Roman and toward Patton, silently begging him to just look up and see how important this was. To see how crucial it was that he stand up to Roman. When Patton didn’t even glance up, Logan turned back to Roman and said, “Let him tell me that.”

Roman let another fake smile cross his face before he nudged Patton, urging him to say it himself, “Go on, tell him.”

Patton glanced up at Logan only for a second, before looking back to the floor. He nodded and then… “Yeah… you can go.” He felt immense shame, knowing he was giving in to exactly what Roman wanted. He didn’t even want to look Logan in the eyes. He didn’t want him to leave, and he realized immediately after he spoke that Logan actually  _ would _ leave. He felt safe when he was around Logan and he wanted him to stay. He didn’t want to be stuck here alone.

Logan sighed. He stood up, grabbed the backpack that had carried the supplies for Fred, and walked towards the door. He tried to ignore Roman’s triumphant smirk.

He turned around and gave Patton one last chance, “Are you sure?” Logan could see Patton’s turmoil. He could see that he didn’t really want Logan to leave. Logan wanted Patton to know that it was okay to stand up for himself. Logan would stay as long as Patton wanted. He tried to convey this through his expression and the short question he had asked. He needed Patton to know that he was strong enough to stand up for himself for once.

Patton didn’t know how to answer. He did know his answer, it was just difficult for him to say it. He would be willing to beg Logan to stay, beg him not to leave him alone, but that wasn’t going to happen.

“W-well I--” Patton felt Roman’s grasp on his waist tighten a bit, like a reminder. He bit his tongue to prevent him from saying anything else. Instead, Patton just gave a small nod.

“Good choice,” Roman said, “Now leave,” His tone was cold, full of conviction. There was no way in hell he was going to let Logan stay a second longer. This was Roman’s best friend, but now Logan was just being so damn suspicious. It was impossible to ignore anymore.

Logan took a deep breath in, said goodbye, and walked out the door.

He hated leaving. He hated himself for going through with it. He hated that Roman had such a strong grasp on Patton that it was impossible for him to make his own choices.

Logan went to his car and drove home. The sun was starting to set. He hadn’t even noticed how long he’d been at Patton’s house. As he made his way back to his house, he was quietly fuming. Once he parked in his driveway, he slammed his forehead against the steering wheel. He just wanted to lay there and scream.

Instead, after a couple seconds and a shaky breath in and out, Logan climbed out of his car and made his way to the front door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to take a small break, mostly because I burned myself out too quickly on writing a new chapter every day. I realized I got a burst of inspiration, wasted it all on writing a ton all at once, and posted the chapters the day that I wrote them. Its pretty unhealthy, so I think I'm going to try to limit myself to one or two chapters a week.  
> Still, thank you all for reading! You all are really kind for all the kudos and comments. They literally make my day. Thank you :>


	14. Chapter 14

Logan was lying on his bed. It was early, the sun only halfway done setting, and yet Logan just wanted to force himself to sleep so that he wouldn’t be troubled by his incessant thoughts. He hadn’t changed into proper clothes to sleep in, still wearing jeans, a polo shirt, and a tie. This day just needed to be over.

It took some time, but finally, he was asleep.

Normally, Logan was responsible enough to do everything meticulously, with specific steps. It was just how he was raised, to have specified processes for everything he did, from waking up to going to sleep to everything in between.

Now it seemed like that was changing. All of the strangeness that had seemed to take over his life recently has made Logan feel… very different. Stressed, and happy, and angry, and calm… all of the stuff going on with Patton was making Logan lose his mind. It was a lot to deal with, but he would never stop being involved as long as Patton was unhappy. 

He had no clue if he could ever back out now that Roman found him suspicious. It was impossible to deny that he was particularly insistent on getting Logan as far from Patton as possible. For what reason, Logan had no clue.

Throughout the day, Virgil had managed quite well. He had almost completely cleared up his hangover. However, his worry was steadily growing. It had been hours since Logan had texted him, “Hold on,” and left it at that. Virgil had still never received a response, so obviously he was worried.

_ [you doing good?] _

He sent a quick message to Logan. And he waited. About half an hour later, he was becoming even more worried.

\------

After Logan left, Roman seemed to be much more at ease. What that means, essentially, is that Roman acted like everything was okay and that what just happened totally didn’t happen at all. Roman knew that kicking Logan out had been pretty shitty, but he felt like he didn’t have much of a choice. Logan  _ was _ here to just deliver the rat thing and leave, so why was he so adamant on staying?

In all honesty, Roman wanted Patton all to himself at the moment. Patton had a hangover and Roman just wanted to come over to help, but then Logan came over and… well, he took Patton’s attention away from him. 

He hated to admit it to himself, and he  _ really _ tried not to. Roman was a tiny bit jealous of Logan. His best friend for so long that he could barely even remember as far as back as the time they met.

“I don’t… I don’t think you should really hang around Logan,” Roman said to Patton. He turned to face him, keeping his arm around his waist, “He’s such a buzzkill and sometimes, and he always acts like he knows what’s best.” 

Excuses.

“You do the same thing,” Patton said quietly. He had stayed silent since Logan left, trying not to make Roman upset.

Roman looked a little hurt at that statement, and tried to justify it, “Well… I’m your boyfriend, so that’s why it’s different.”

“Right…” Patton sighed, stepping away from Roman, “I’m gonna go put Fred and George in their cage. I’ll be right back.” He picked up George, placing him on his head, and held Fred securely in his arms since Fred wasn’t quite used to him yet. Roman stayed in the living room, sitting on the couch.

As Patton went up the stairs, Roman thought about the party. For some reason, in the middle of that night, it’s like Logan just suddenly started acting really different. Weird, and not a good kind of weird.

Patton opened up the small cage he had and set Fred and George down inside. Fred seemed to be adjusting quite nicely. George laid on top of the lion plush Patton had placed in the cage earlier. He tried to smile at the sight of the two weasels, but he couldn’t manage. He knew why. Roman had made him feel miserable  _ again _ , he did so whenever he came around. And somehow, he would always convince Patton to let him stay.

Being with him felt like poison. Making Patton feel weak and like he was slowly becoming incapable of even smiling anymore.

He went back downstairs where Roman was waiting. He sat down beside him and was immediately told, “I’m serious, you know. You really shouldn’t be around Logan.”

“Why not? He’s  _ your _ friend,” Patton said almost immediately in response, his voice filled with defiance.

Roman’s eyes narrowed at Patton, “…That doesn’t matter. Just… stop being around him. He’s been acting so weird recently.”

Patton didn’t wait another second to respond. After everything that just happened, Patton was sick of hearing Roman’s bullshit. Turning around and looking away from Roman, he said quietly and defiantly, “I’ll be around whoever I  _ want _ to be around.”

During the next half hour or so, Roman was more or less trying to subtly convince Patton that the only person who should be around was him. Now that Logan was acting all weird and Virgil was glaring at him that other day like he’d murdered an innocent helpless animal, it seemed like even his own two best friends were being super suspicious. Basically, Roman was saying things like “I’ll stick around,” and “I want what’s best for you.”

But Patton could see right through all of it. Ever since he had been talking with Logan, he felt like he was making more sense of everything going on around him. He could tell what was bad, what was good, and Patton felt that maybe he could even do something about it. He even told Roman no once or twice, which may not seem like much, but it meant a lot to him.

Nevertheless, he let Roman rant on and on until he tired himself out and decided to go home. Before he left, he told Patton, “If I’m not busy, I’ll probably stop by tomorrow. If not, then I’ll text you.”

Patton could honestly not care any less.

A few minutes passed, Patton just sitting in the living room and doing nothing at all. Mainly, he was just thinking about everything that has happened in these past two days. It was crazy. But then, he heard his phone go off. He reached for it from its place on a cushion across the couch. It was from Virgil.

_ [hey, do you know what’s going on with logan? he was texting me hours ago and just suddenly left and didn’t come back?] _

Virgil was just worried out of his mind, so he decided to text Patton. He  _ was _ the main topic of conversation between him and Logan earlier, so it would make sense to ask Patton? Maybe? Virgil tried not to express his concerns when it came to his friends, trying not to seem too clingy, but they were usually the main sources of his worry anyway. And he cares about them or whatever. So he kind of needed to find some sort of information.

Patton decided to send a quick text, not wanting Virgil to worry any longer.

_ [He was here a little while ago, I’m pretty sure he should be home by now.] _

Virgil sighed in relief, though he was still a little curious.

_ [what was he there for? he left me with a text that just said hold on.] _

Patton couldn’t help but smile at reading Virgil’s text and thinking about what had actually happened. It wasn’t every day someone came by and just gave you a weasel.

_ [He gave me a cute weasel, and kind of got me a permit for owning one which I didn’t even know I needed.] _

_ [aww, that’s nice. can i see the new one?] _

_ [Sure! Gimme a second.] _

Patton quickly got up from the couch and went upstairs to his room to take the picture of the two babies being adorable.

As he waited for the picture, Virgil smiled at the messages. He had seen George a few times in the past, but not enough times to make the weasel particularly enjoy his company. Still, he thought George was pretty cute. And Virgil had no clue Logan was capable of even doing something so… sweet. And also strange. Just giving someone a weasel? 

And then the picture was sent and oh my god--

_ [i love them.] _

Patton looked over at the two weasels and said, “Both of you are very much loved, just a reminder.” Of course they had no clue what he was even saying, but oh well.

_ [I named the new one Fred. I didn’t even mention I have a weasel to him, so this gift is amazing!] _

_ [oh i think he found out when i mentioned george earlier.] _

Virgil decided it was probably best to not mention that Logan told him that Patton talked about George when he was completely drunk. Patton probably didn’t even remember it at all. It was probably best to just let him be unaware of all of the weird things he most likely said.

The main thing that Virgil was wondering was why would Logan even give Patton a gift out of nowhere. Logan did mention the fact that he made Patton uncomfortable by accident last night, but surely that can’t be the only reason why he literally got him a brand new pet. Virgil could always find that out later, because right now, he had another thing on his mind…

_ [how are you doing with roman?] _

There was no reply for a minute or two. Patton was staring at the phone, deciding how to respond. He ended up just being genuine.

_ [Actually, I think things are getting better.] _

He was referring to the fact he was starting to stick up for himself. Of course it wasn’t that much different, but these things took baby steps. Patton decided to send another quick message elaborating. He wasn’t going to go into all of the details though. No way would he do that.

_ [He was here earlier when Logan came by, and it wasn’t as bad as I thought. It was kinda bad, only for a bit though.] _

_ [sooo you mean you’re closer to breaking up with him? no matter how long i’ve known him and how long he’s been my friend, i can’t deny that he is being quite the asshole.] _

_ [Language!! >:O] _

_ [Honestly though, I’m not sure yet. It’s like the better I get, he gets way, way worse.] _

_ [i mean, that makes sense. if he’s over-controlling, which he is, then you taking some control away from him is gonna make him upset.] _

If he was being honest, Patton was a little more scared than he used to be. If what Virgil was saying was true, then how bad could Roman get? Before, Roman wouldn’t dare think about making himself look bad in front of anyone else, especially not Logan or Virgil. Now, though, he was willing to pull Patton aside and yell at him within obvious hearing distance from his own friends!

He tried to shake the thought away, not wanting to think about that right now.

_ [I’m sure I’ll be fine.] _

Virgil quickly responded, correcting himself.

_ [no, i never said you wouldn’t be. i’m just saying roman will definitely get worse, and you’re gonna have to adapt. he’s bad now, but i know you can handle it. you can get out of this if that’s what you really want, pat.] _

Patton just stared at that last part of Virgil’s message. Of course he wanted out, no one would want to stay in something like this. Patton just had no clue how. Still in his room, he decided to lay on his bed, placing his phone on his chest before watching the weasels in their cage across the room as he thought about his answer.

It took about three minutes, but he responded eventually.

_ [Maybe soon but not now] _

Virgil’s response came almost instantly.

_ [of course, you should take as much time as you need. stuff like this is always difficult.] _

And after another minute or so without a response from Patton, Virgil decided to send another message. Virgil wasn’t great with comforting people, but he was trying.

_ [night, pat. i hope you feel a little better soon.] _

_ [Night, Virgil] _

Patton sat up in his bed, and decided to take a quick picture of Fred and George from across the room. They were sleeping. He sent the picture to Virgil as a final text of the night.

And then he laid back in his bed and stared at the ceiling. He did that for a long time. Today was a long and difficult day, and it was finally,  _ finally _ over. Honestly, no matter what tomorrow would bring, it would certainly be better than anything that happened today. Except maybe getting a new weasel. That was pretty hard to beat.

At least that thought made Patton smile.

\------

The next morning, Logan woke up and instantly wanted to go back to sleep. Thoughts of yesterday instantly flooded into his mind and he wanted to forget everything.

He closed his eyes, holding his hands over his face, and groaned. He already knew he would be thinking about this for weeks. That is, until something worse would inevitably come along to take over its place as the thing that overtook Logan’s every stray thought. That is how these things have gone so far these past three days.

Logan couldn’t help but wish that Patton had been strong enough to tell Roman what he wanted. He would get there eventually, obviously. But Logan just wished it would happen now. He was tired of Roman’s bullshit.

Forcing himself to stand up, Logan glanced down at his watch (which he had also fallen asleep wearing) and saw that it was 10:06. That was actually quite late for him to wake up, normally. Right now, he couldn’t bother to care.

His parents were very strict about being responsible, so he had to get up, make his bed, and start doing chores, no matter how exhausted he felt. He wasn’t tired, per se… just exhausted. Emotionally.

No matter how much he didn’t want to do any of that, he forced himself to. He did so reluctantly, but he couldn’t just not do it.

While he loaded the dirty dishes into the dishwasher, started a load of laundry, and did all of the other numerous chores he had, he was battling his mind to make sure he didn’t focus on Roman’s horrible triumphant smirk or Patton’s small head nod that had simultaneously forced Logan to leave and give Roman exactly what he wanted.

When he was done, he began to eat breakfast silently, staring at the wall and trying to avoid any thoughts of all of Roman’s bullshit.

That was a futile effort, of course.

\------

It had been very difficult for Patton to sleep last night. The next morning, his body refused to let him wake up at an early time. When he did try, he would just instantly knock out cold again. It was probably for the best. Sleeping had been pretty difficult lately. 

Another reason he couldn’t wake up is because he didn’t have George to give him a wake up call. That weasel has one job-- 

Then again it is Patton’s fault for putting him in the cage last night.

At around 10:50, Patton finally got up. It was so much later than he was used to, but he just needed to stay in the bed as long as he could. Now that he was up, he just sat on the edge of his bed and tried to adjust his eyes to the light. He looked over at George and Fred, who were playing.

Patton promised himself that today would be better.

He got up and changed into something new for the day. He didn’t plan on going anywhere or having anyone over, so he just put on some blue shorts and a shirt with Ned from Twenty One Pilots on it.

And as he was pulling the shirt over his head, he suddenly heard the muffled ringing of his phone. He quickly finished putting the shirt on and looked around for his phone. It was under his covers-- And now he has to tear his whole bed apart to find it.

His blanket was now halfway on the floor alongside a pillow. Also, as he scrambled to grab his phone (he hated leaving people hanging for so long), he dropped it. He picked it up quickly and, without looking, answered the phone.

“Hello?”

Logan was honestly pretty surprised that the call was answered so quickly. He had called mostly due to his growing curiosity at how Patton was handling everything after yesterday. Besides, what could Roman even do? It’s not like he monitored whatever Patton did on his phone. But Patton also answered so ordinarily. It was just normal? After everything that happened yesterday, that was pretty surprising. He wondered if Patton even knew it was him.

Logan responded simply, “Hello, Patton.”

Hearing Logan’s voice honestly made Patton stop breathing for a second. He took his phone away from his ear and glanced at the screen. Yep, definitely Logan. “Oh-- hey Logan.”

Patton began cleaning the mess that was his bed, keeping his phone close. He wasn’t expecting a call from Logan at all, and he wondered what it was about. He thought he was probably calling about yesterday.

And Patton was kind of right in his assumption, except Logan wasn’t going to talk about the  _ situation _ from yesterday, but he was going to talk about Patton specifically. He asked, “How are you doing?” It was the type of question asked by thousands of people daily as small talk, but Logan’s voice conveyed sympathy and worry, even if he didn’t intend for it to. A question like that meant a lot after a day like yesterday.

Logan would never quite admit it, but he really did care for his friends. They were always his top priority, even if he was focused on school or anything else. At this moment, Patton was especially a priority.

Patton didn’t answer at first. He didn’t know how. After yesterday, he was feeling a lot of things, some of them were actually good feelings, surprisingly. Only a few, though.

“…I don’t know. Scared, mostly.” He felt like he could come out and say how he was feeling to Logan without hesitating or feeling bad about it. Feeling comfortable enough to talk about stuff like that was pretty new to Patton, at least as of late.

He finished making his bed, having a seat in the middle of it. He took a small pillow and held it in his arms, hugging it for comfort.

“Well, that is reasonable,” Logan responded. After a short pause, he continued to speak, “Well, I hope he does not return, I assume you just need some space today? I certainly would…” His sympathy was evident even through his usual sophisticated speaking. He couldn’t help but sound worried.

“Not like I could stop him from coming over anyway…” Patton murmured. He wasn’t wrong. Even when he didn’t want Roman around, he still managed to find his way here. He quietly sighed, looking down at his pillow, “He said he might be busy today anyway, so I guess he might not bother me.”

Once Patton was done speaking, Logan immediately let his thoughts out into the open, “You can absolutely tell him to go away. He may not listen, but trying will at least show him that you can stand up for yourself… Besides, you could always hide away at mine or Virgil’s house if you need it.”

Patton smiled a little, but he still sounded slightly pessimistic as he said, “That’s sweet Logan, but I think that would probably only get him more mad…”

He thought for a moment. Being somewhere without Roman’s permission would get him mad, wouldn’t it? He sure as heck deserves it! Still, Patton shook that thought away, instead saying, “Besides, George doesn’t like being left alone for too long.”

“I suppose that makes sense…” Logan said in response to the whole George reasoning, “But I do not see how a little anger would be bad for Roman. In all honesty, he deserves it,” He said with a slightly teasing tone. Maybe it was a little early to make jokes about this whole relationship situation, but he really couldn’t help it. Making light of the situation was the only way to keep himself from actually punching Roman in the face.

Patton tried to hide the fact he wanted to laugh at that last part. Sure, he was thinking it, but he wouldn’t have said it out loud, “Didn’t think you’d say that out loud-- I won’t boo you though, cause you’re definitely right.”

He smiled a little, looking over at George and Fred and letting his smile grow as he saw the two of them getting along. Things were already going better.

“Besides,” Patton said, getting a little more serious, “I’m pretty sure he’d be pretty mad at both of you guys if I did that, and I wouldn’t want that.”

Logan thought quietly to himself for a few seconds, and eventually decided to speak honestly, “Well, I have known Roman for a long time. You already know that. I know that he is very egotistical and possessive, and those are his two worst traits. He gets self conscious and… he just wants to keep the good things in his life,” Logan paused before getting into the more emotional side of this little rant, “Still, that does not excuse what he’s doing… He has stuck by for many years, despite our numerous differences. I would hate to lose him, he is one of my only three friends… but at this time, you are my priority, Patton.”

It was difficult to admit something like that. Logan listened to the silence on the other end for a few seconds before continuing, “Roman is being a terrible person, and even though I know he can do better, no reasonable person would expect you to stay with him if he is hurting you. Which he is.”

Patton didn’t say anything for a brief moment. He stared down at the pillow in his arms, messing with some of the fluff that was on it. He really did feel bad for dragging Logan and Virgil into all of this. If he hadn’t said anything then chances are they wouldn’t be worried and things would be okay for both of them. They also wouldn’t be forced to help him just because they felt bad.

“Yeah, you’re right… I’m sorry…” He spoke quietly.

In the short second between Logan’s quick response, Patton began to think to himself. Maybe the only reason Logan was being so nice was because he felt bad for him. Anyone would, it’s the logical thing to feel after seeing how much stuff Patton’s going through. He didn’t know what else to say besides sorry.

Logan, on the other hand, was shocked. All he said was, “Sorry for what?” He saw nothing for Patton to feel sorry about.

“A lot of things… Sorry for pulling you and Virgil into this mess , sorry for having you guys put up with all of it, s-sorry for not being strong enough…” His voice trailed off at the end, becoming shaky. He tried to hide it. He knew he wasn’t capable of getting through this thing on his own, and that’s probably what he was mainly sorry for.

“I just can’t be as confident and-- and smart, and perfect as you… if I just kept my mouth shut then everything would be alright for you…”

Logan’s eyes widened as he listened to Patton’s gradually breaking voice. He quickly tried to reassure him, “No! No, Patton. You don’t need to be sorry for that.” He was using contractions again. His nerves were getting to him. But right now that didn’t matter, only helping Patton in any way he could mattered.

“Virgil and I are willing to help. More than willing. We  _ want _ to help, Patton,” He continued, “And you  _ are _ strong. You can get out of this mess. Maybe you’re not quite there yet, but you will be. You told Roman no plenty of times yesterday, and that’s something to be proud of. You’re incredibly determined, and it’s one of the things I’ve always admired about you.”

And lastly… “I’m not perfect, Patton. Hardly even close. I’m not confident in the slightest, But I am confident in this… You do not need to hide how you feel. I may be a hypocrite in that regard, but…” Well, he didn’t know how to continue. He was a hypocrite. He never expressed his feelings unless absolutely necessary, like the night of the party, or even right now.

“I… I’m glad you told Virgil and I what was happening,” He decided to go back to the original topic. He needed to help, “I don’t  _ want _ you to be alright, Patton. I feel like… I need you to be alright.” Logically, it was a lie. He didn’t need Patton to be alright in the way he needed water or air. But he wanted it so desperately that he felt as if he  _ did _ need it. That amount of desperation was evident in his voice as he spoke.

Patton could feel tears stinging his eyes as he listened to Logan speak. He hugged his pillow tighter, staying there in silence for a moment before saying, “What if… what if I can’t? What if I’m stuck like this and there’s nothing I can do?” He wanted to believe he could have the strength to leave, and Logan’s words made him feel like he did, but he couldn’t ignore that small piece of doubt that seemed to be flooding his mind.

One by one, tears started rolling down his cheeks while he tried to keep his voice steady.

“I feel like this is all my fault for not doing something sooner, and he… He’s like a reminder of the worst decision I ever made.”

Logan was devastated to hear Patton’s voice cracking again. He was struggling to keep his voice from shaking, to let on that he was crying. It was obvious anyway. Logan spoke quietly, “It’s going to take a while, Patton. It’s going to be difficult. Still, I have no doubt that you can get through this. Everyone has doubts about themselves, but I know you’re strong enough. You won’t be stuck forever,” He continued, commenting on the last thing that Patton said, “And none of this is your fault. All you’re doing is putting up with Roman’s nonsense. It’s difficult, obviously.”

But Logan didn’t comment on the statement that dating Roman was the worst thing that Patton’s ever done. Honestly, Logan disagreed the tiniest bit.

Although Patton was stuck in a horrible situation and Logan would never wish that upon anyone, Logan couldn’t deny that he was glad that Roman had met Patton. If that never happened, then Logan never would have had the blessing of having Patton in his life.

Obviously if he never met Patton, then his life would go on as normal. But normal isn’t always good. Patton is the kindest person that Logan has ever met, and he allowed Logan to open up emotionally more in these past four days than he ever had in his entire life.

It was common that people in relationships like these would blame themselves, even if it wasn’t true in the slightest. They could blame themselves for even the smallest things, or things that had nothing to do with them. Patton was no different.

Still, he took in Logan’s words. If Logan believed that he was capable of getting through this then maybe there was a chance.

He stayed quiet as he began trying to wipe away his tears. Once they were mostly gone, he hesitantly asked, “…You really mean it?” He wasn’t doubting Logan, he just needed some confirmation. Even if Logan was just saying this to make him feel better, which was working, it still felt really good to hear this kind of stuff from him.

Logan said honestly, “Yes, I do. There is proof that abusive relationships destroy the self-esteem of the victim, and how with time it’s difficult to escape the cycle of control… how completely difficult it can be…” Logan paused, “You know I enjoy knowledge, facts… But none of that matters, at least not now. Because people can and  _ do _ get out of those situations. And because I have complete faith that, with time, someone as incredibly strong as you can do so, too. You can overcome all of that.”

Patton took a shaky breath to calm himself down, running his fingers through his hair. At least now he knew he had a chance, and his friends would be backing him up. And although his smile was small and weak, it was permanent. He couldn’t help but smile at the last thing Logan said, “Thanks, Logan…”

He laid down on his bed, facing the ceiling, still cradling the pillow in his arms for comfort.

“Of course…” Logan smiled somewhat sadly. It was bittersweet. It had been difficult to get through to Patton, but once he had, he was unbelievably glad that he had tried. He hadn’t expected the conversation to become so emotionally overwhelming so quickly. All he wanted to do was ask if Patton was okay after yesterday. What else could he expect other than a deep, emotional conversation, though? This was Patton he was talking to.

Patton had a way of making him feel more emotions than he could ever properly handle.

It was nice talking to Logan. Even though Patton could tell that Logan wasn’t all too comfortable with emotions, Patton thought it was nice when the two would be able to actually talk to one another like this. Before two nights ago, he never even  _ did _ talk to Logan like this. At all. Still, it was wonderful to know that he had Logan around.

Patton looked to the side where the two weasel children were chilling in their cage. Fred went over to the glass and began pawing at it. Patton smiled at the cute action, saying to Logan, “Fred says hi, by the way.”

Logan was glad the conversation dropped in intensity. He did let out a small, relieved sigh and let a small smile cross his face. Things were still normal.

“Tell him I said hi back, then,” Logan could help the fact that his smile grew. He was saying hi to a weasel.

Patton giggled slightly as he turned to face the weasel, “Logan says hi,” and then Fred tried to climb on the glass but instantly fell back, “Oop--” Patton said as he reached for the weasel but obviously it fell back onto the floor of its cage. It was a small fall, but still.

“Are you okay?” Patton said to Fred, standing up and making his way to the cage. Fred simply got himself back up and tried again, “No-- don’t do that agai-- and you did it again…” These weasels were dumb.

Logan laughed quietly on the other end of the phone, picturing the scene that was happening. He could tell the weasels were up to some nonsense. Surprisingly, he absolutely loved those two animals already.

George saw what Fred was doing and even tried climbing on top of him to get out of the cage. Patton rolled his eyes at the babies and opened the cage for them, picking them both up and placing them on his bed. Fred sniffed around the area while George immediately took his place on Patton’s pillow. It was his throne.

“Share the pillow--” Patton said when he saw Fred trying to get on, but he was interrupted by George hissing at Fred. Patton gasped, “Sharing is caring and we are a loving household! Now share!”

George still wasn’t giving up any of his space to Fred.

Logan smiled, making a small joke, “Well, how is parenting for two going, Patton? It seems wonderful.”

“Being both a father and a mother is not an easy task,” Patton said, looking at the babies who were now just staring at each other.

“Oh please, we all know Virgil would make a great mother for the babies.”

“Better parent than me, I’m sure of it,” Patton tried picking up Fred, but all he did was squirm and hiss, causing Patton to drop him back onto the bed, “Fred is already going through his rebel phase.”

“Wonderful. Clearly Virgil does have some influence then,” Logan smiled at his own joke.

Patton giggled at that remark, which only made Logan’s smile grow more. Patton responded, “Yes, clearly.”

Logan let out a small sigh, “Well, I am glad you are alright, Patton. I have some… schoolwork to do,” It was a lie, but he could always do some work anyway. Honestly, he just didn’t want to get scolded by his parent’s for wasting their entire phone bill on this call. If he decided to stay, he had no clue how long he would talk to Patton about anything and everything he could possibly want to discuss. 

Normally, he would never be willing to do that. He would talk about whatever it is he called for, and nothing else. In this case, checking if Patton was alright.

But Logan knew well by now that Patton had become an exception to a lot of his normalities. Patton could ramble on about anything in the universe and Logan would listen. He feels like he could talk to Patton for hours.

“Oh, alright then.” Patton was a little disappointed, but understood that Logan liked to complete work on time and such. He didn’t want to get in the way of that, “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He put the phone near Fred and George, “Say bye…” George ignored him and Fred tried scratching his phone. Patton lifted the phone back up to his ear and said, “I think that means bye…?”

“Well, tell them that I said goodbye. And… bye Patton,” He said it reverently. He didn’t want to go, but again… his parents.

“Bye Logan,” Patton was smiling again, and it was evident even through the phone. Logan’s own smile grew as he heard the final words spoken by Patton, and then he hung up.

Logan sat at the kitchen table for a few more minutes before getting up and actually working on schoolwork. He was already ahead, but whatever. At least this means he technically was telling the truth to Patton. He at least owes him that.

Patton spent the rest of the day with Fred and George, watching a couple of things on Netflix when he got bored.

He hadn’t been bothered by Roman, thankfully, but Roman did text to see how he was doing. Because even though he was a huge jerkwad, Roman still loved Patton very much. A little too much.

Besides that, Patton had a good day. Much better than yesterday, for sure.

As the night drew closer, Logan became increasingly worried for tomorrow. Every single day it would always be him, Virgil, Roman, and Patton together at lunch. And this made him wonder what would happen tomorrow what with everything going on. He and Virgil knew what Patton was thinking, and then there was the party, the events of yesterday… everything was so tense. 

And above all else, Roman now viewed Logan as a threat.


	15. Chapter 15

It was Monday morning, and both Patton and Logan awoke to not very pleasant situations.

Logan had a terrible night’s sleep. He even woke up in the middle of the night, which was very, very uncommon for him. Clearly everything going on was having more of an affect on him than he’d like to think. And of course, the second his eyes were open, Logan’s mind was flooded with unpleasant thoughts about the events of the past three days. He could never shut his brain off for even a millisecond.

He stood up and walked to the bathroom to take a shower and get dressed in his usual attire of dark black jeans, a polo shirt, and a tie.

After eating breakfast, Logan made his way to his car to pick Virgil up for school.

Patton, on the other hand, awoke to Fred literally clawing at his face. 

He immediately sat up and removed the weasel, “Ow ow-- OW,” He murmured quietly to himself as he held Fred far from his face. Patton placed Fred on the side of the bed and turned to face George, You just let him do that to me?” He didn’t get an answer, obviously.

Still, Patton could never stay mad at the babies forever. It barely even lasted a second before he looked into those beady black eyes and all was forgiven. He picked up the weasels and placed them in their cage before getting ready for the day.

When he went into the bathroom, his first order of business was placing two small band-aids where Fred had scratched him. They were Spiderman themed, though, so Patton didn’t mind at all. He also changed into a pastel pink shirt that said “Wumbo” on it. It was one of his favorite shirts… and he wore light blue overall shorts with it, along with some white tennis shoes.

Patton, obviously, thought he looked awesome.

Grabbing his backpack, Patton said a quick goodbye to the weasel children, and then headed downstairs and out of the house, making the short walk to Roman’s house for his daily ride to school. As he walked, he scrolled through his phone. He was mainly just trying to distract himself from the thought that he was going to see Roman again. When he finally arrived, he made sure to text Roman that he was there. And as usual, Patton sat on the steps outside of the door while he waited for Roman to come outside.

It took about ten or so minutes. As usual. When Roman finally did come outside, he greeted Patton with a small kiss to the cheek, acting as if everything was okay, knowing damn well it wasn’t. 

It wasn’t okay. As usual.

As they made their way to the school, the car was almost completely silent. Roman’s plan was to change the conversation any time the topic of the weekend’s events came up. For right now, thankfully, neither of them had mentioned it. Instead, Roman asked about the band-aids. Patton had to explain that it was Fred, which obviously made Roman the tiniest bit disgusted. He still hated the little things.

Still, he asked, “And you chose Spiderman because…?”

Patton shrugged, “Peter Parker is a great hero. You could fight me on that. Square up.”

Roman shook his head with a slight smile, knowing full well Patton wouldn’t even be able to take him on. Patton’s reaction  _ was _ cute, though, so Roman just rolled his eyes and said “Right, whatever then.”

Eventually they made it to the school, and when they stepped out of the car, Roman was immediately making sure that Patton stayed close to him. Patton tried inching away from him slightly. “You know, you don’t have to do this every time I’m in public with you. I’m sure people already know,” Patton argued. At least he was speaking up about it now.

Roman nodded, “I know… but you can never be too careful. Besides, who knows what would happen if I let you out of my sight.”

It was probably best to just stay silent after that. So Patton did. They walked through the hallways, Roman walking with Patton to his own class, since it was closer than Patton’s. But before Patton could leave, Roman asked somewhat hesitantly, “For lunch… would you like to try sitting next to some of your friends today?”

Patton just stared at Roman for a few seconds, knowing full well that Roman didn’t like being around people he didn’t know too well. Well, that’s not exactly true. He didn’t like  _ Patton _ being around people that he didn’t know too well. So this was… unexpected?

And then it hit him. He just doesn’t want to be near Virgil or Logan at all today.

He wanted to say no, because sometimes he felt like Roman really needed to suffer for what he does, but then again, he hasn’t really been able to have an opportunity like this before. He knew Roman would be uncomfortable with Logan and Virgil, but he finally got a chance to hang out with Emile during school!

“I’ll think about it,” Patton decided. 

“Okay, I’ll see you later then,” Roman gave Patton a small kiss on the top of his head before entering his class. Patton was genuinely going to think about this. He walked down the halls, going into his own class, which was band. Thankfully, he wasn’t late today like he usually was. Being late was always Roman’s fault anyway, since he gave Patton his ride to school every morning.

Thankfully, Patton was able to keep himself from thinking about what was yet to come during first period. He always thought of the band room as the most fun room in the whole school, so it was a nice distraction.

\------

When Logan pulled up in front of Virgil’s house, he sent him a text to tell him that he was there, and he waited.

After about a minute, a very tired-looking Virgil stepped out of the house. This was how he usually looked for the first few days of the school week. Holding a thermos with black coffee in it (with another one in his backpack for when the first runs out), wearing his usual black hoodie. Today he was also wearing pajama pants that were dark purple with a plaid pattern. It seemed like he was even more exhausted than usual today.

Virgil climbed into the car and turned on the radio since Logan usually drove in silence, like a weirdo. He took a sip from his coffee as Logan began to drive again.

They made their way to school without saying a word, Logan being fully aware that when Virgil was tired like this, silence was always preferred. They soon arrived at the school and they got out of the car, making their way to the front doors.

Logan walked with Virgil to his class, said goodbye, and then made his way to his locker before heading to his own class.

Finally, school.

Almost everyone hated it, obviously, but for Logan it was a wonderful distraction from the complete and utter turmoil that had been his brain for the past two days. He could focus on this, on his classes and his teachers and his work. It would keep his mind away from Patton for at least a small amount of time.

Of course he still cared about everything going on, and he cared about Patton. He wanted to help more than anything. But this was still a lot more than Logan was used to handling, a huge situation that he hadn’t even expected to take part in. So a distraction, even a temporary one, was very welcome.

Virgil spent most of the school day asleep. As soon as he walked into the classroom and sat down, he dropped his head onto the desk. 

For fucks sake, why does he have to be here? And after a party, too? Obviously his hangover was gone but the exhaustion from interacting with other people was still very present and  _ very _ annoying. Social gatherings aren’t exactly Virgil’s strong suit.

So Virgil slept through all of first period. No surprise there. After about the sixth attempt, his teacher gave up on trying to wake him up at all.

After first period finished, it was now passing period, and Logan’s mind was beginning to wander again. He wondered what would happen at lunch. What would happen during English class, when he and Patton were together without Roman around? Obviously Roman wanted to keep Logan away from Patton as much as possible, but it’s not like Roman could separate them when they had a class together.

The rest of the day went by in much the same way. Virgil barely being able to keep his eyes open, Logan trying his hardest not to focus on the shit show of the past few days…

You know, the usual.

And then lunch arrived. Logan sat down at the table they usually sat at, waiting for Virgil. They were usually the first two there because their classes were closer. But when Virgil finally did arrive, it was evident to both of them that the other was  _ also _ extremely worried. Virgil looked panicked and Logan had clearly run his hand through his hair numerous times, which was a nervous tick of his. They knew that being anywhere near Roman right now would absolutely suck.

Virgil’s worry grew as time went on. He was watching the door, waiting for Roman and Patton to enter. He didn’t know all of the details of everything that’s happened recently, but he knew that something was up.

He knew because even Logan seemed worried. Really, really worried.

\------

During the day, Patton had made his decision on Roman’s question.

He had been able to keep his mind off of it during most of the day, however, he now had to actually think it through. So, while there was a pause in his physics class when the teacher was helping someone, Patton thought it through.

It would probably be best if he and Roman didn't sit with the other two for today. It wouldn’t be a surprise if one of them flipped the table because of something the other said. Or did. Besides, it would be fun to sit with Emile and his friends. Or-- friend. Was Remy even just a friend? Patton wasn’t really sure, considering he rarely even got to see Emile anymore.

As his physics class ended, the routine went as usual. Roman waiting for Patton, Roman stopping to get some snacks, and then heading to the cafeteria.

Once inside, Patton glanced around the room. He spotted Emile at a table, sitting with Remy. He looked over at Roman and said, “Let’s sit with them,” pointing over at his friend and giving a hopeful smile.

Roman looked over, winced, and said, “Anyone but them…”

Patton’s smile dropped, and he was about to choose someone else… but then he thought that if he wanted to become better at defending himself, this seemed like a good first step. He needed to stand up for himself more, “I want to sit with them.”

Roman chuckled slightly, like Patton was joking, “Funny. Come on, choose somewhere else.”

Crossing his arms, Patton looked up at Roman defiantly, “I choose them.” It was obvious that Roman was starting to get irritated. Patton tried not to shrink back too much at the slight glare he received. It did make him a bit nervous, but he stood his ground.

After seeing that Patton wouldn’t budge, Roman mumbled something under his breath before saying, “Fine! Just make sure you keep a good distance. One of them is really touchy.”

Patton grinned, nodding to show he understood what Roman said, and then led the way to Emile and Remy’s table. Emile was clearly surprised to see Patton, but also very, very excited. The two of them hadn’t been able to talk much outside of band. Patton happily greeted both Emile and Remy, and was very happy to see them.

Roman, on the other hand, wouldn’t mind throwing himself into the nearest trash bin and staying there until lunch was over. For once, Roman didn’t really say much. He would mumble something to Patton when he had the chance, but that’s about it.

Nevertheless, Patton was ecstatic to be around them. At least  _ Emile _ complimented his Spiderman band-aid.

Logan and Virgil had watched all of that. They couldn’t hear them, obviously, since they were all the way across the room, but seeing Patton cross his arms and Roman appear to give in to something filled both boys with relief. It seemed like Patton was standing up for himself.

Then again… they also went to a different table.

“That asshole…” Virgil mumbled, “He probably told Patton to stay away from us.”

Logan sighed, “It is alright, Virgil. Although I agree, it is very likely that Roman is trying to keep him away… At least he is with some of his other friends. I am glad Roman did not force Patton to sit next to Roman’s theatre or sports friend. They can be quite…”

“Annoying? Stupid? Irresponsible?” Virgil supplied adjectives to describe them. They were either stuck up or moronic, no in between. At least in general.

“Yes,” Logan agreed simply. Having Patton sit with Emile was at least one of the better outcomes of Roman’s over-controlling nature.

They tried to move on. Logan ate, acting like everything was normal (or at least trying), and Virgil kept glancing back at Patton and Roman.

“I’m worried,” He said.

Logan looked down at him, “Virgil. Do not intervene. Patton can handle this, it’s alright.”

Virgil groaned, “But I can’t just…  _ not _ be worried.”

“I never said you were not allowed to be worried. I told you not to intervene.”

Virgil mumbled quietly to himself as he turned back toward his food. Still, he couldn’t help but keep glancing back at Patton’s table.

Glancing over at Roman, Patton noticed that he looked tense, and very pissed off. Patton gave him an innocent smile, “Having fun? I’m having fun. We should do this every day!”

Roman quickly shook his head, “No! No we should not!” He glanced over at Emile and Remy, “No offense…” The two didn’t really seem to care too much. Emile did look a little hurt though.

Patton’s innocent smile morphed into a grin. He was enjoying this, being able to stand up for himself. Roman was understandably pissed off, but Patton couldn’t really seem to care. He enjoyed seeing Roman like this. He enjoyed being listened to for once. Still, Roman leaned over and whispered, “Next time I get to choose where we sit.”

Forcing himself not to frown, Patton nodded. It did seem fair, at least.

Virgil had continued to watch them, and he noticed that Roman was looking increasingly more pissed off. He also noticed when Roman leaned over and whispered something in Patton’s ear. And Virgil wanted to go over there and drag Patton away, but he wouldn’t be any better than Roman if he did, would he? So he dealt with it.

Throughout the rest of lunch, Logan acted as Virgil’s voice of reason whenever his sleep-deprived, only slightly caffeinated brain wanted to do something impulsive.

Roman continued to eat his snacks as he let Patton and Emile talk. Remy was mostly just staring at his phone, but he did respond when he was spoken to. So Remy didn’t talk much, but it was still more than Roman.

And whenever Roman noticed Emile getting a little too close to Patton, he would pull him a little closer. Patton has constantly told Roman that he doesn’t need to worry about Emile, that Emile has been his friend for years, but that obviously doesn’t stop Roman from getting jealous and overprotective.

But as soon as it began, lunch was over. Logan let out a sigh of relief as the bell rang, glad there had been no major incident. However, he couldn’t ignore the whispers of the people around him, discussing why he and Virgil were sitting alone.

They weren’t popular people, not at all. No one ever paid much mind to Logan or Virgil. However, people had become accustomed to the fact that Roman never sat with anyone but his two loser friends and his boyfriend. And the change in routine was evident to everyone.

None of that mattered anyway. Logan was much more concerned about English class.

He said a quick goodbye to Virgil before they headed in opposite directions, and, as usual, Logan watched Patton and Roman walk out of the cafeteria before he left. Before, he used to keep his distance because it was awkward that they had said goodbye when they were heading to the same place, but now… it was just best he kept his distance whenever Roman was around at all.

Roman wanted to get away from Emile and Remy as quickly as possible. He would run if he could but that would be rude. Emile was going to give Patton a hug as a goodbye but that was immediately stopped when Roman tugged Patton away.

“Well, guess I’m going backwards,” Patton tried to joke, letting a small smile cross his face as he waved them goodbye. He noticed the worried glances between the two of them. Patton tried to ignore it.

As soon as they were out of the cafeteria, Roman let go, “Okay. That was fun for you, but never again are we sitting with them.” Patton had no clue why Roman didn’t like them, he thought they were pretty great. He didn’t bother to question him anyway, Roman’s logic never made sense.

Roman began walking Patton to class. He had been holding back a lot of what he wanted to say during lunch, so he was sure as hell going to fill Patton in on whatever he wanted to ramble on about now.

And then they reached the door to Patton’s English class.

“Remember, I… I really don’t want you talking to Logan, okay?” Roman said quietly before giving Patton a kiss on top of his head.

Of course that upset Patton. He forced himself to look up at Roman, to smile and nod, fully aware that he was going to ignore that. He might as well keep Roman from freaking out.

A smile broke out across Roman’s face. He clearly believed that Patton was going to listen to him. So he gave Patton another quick kiss before heading down the hall toward his own class.

Logan had tried not to watch as the two interacted, but he lifted his head as Patton walked into the room. He made eye contact with him, gave a small smile and a little wave. And his smile grew when Patton’s face lit up slightly, changing from its previous frown. Patton also gave a small wave, and when he sat down in his seat right next to Logan, he gave a short, “Hey.”

Patton felt bad for not sitting with him and Virgil at lunch, but then again, if it meant none of them killing each other then maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing.

As soon as the bell rang, Mr. Torres walked into the room and began speaking, “Alright… so, we finished reading The Kite Runner last week, correct? It’s time to begin our Macbeth lesson.”

Logan grinned. He loves Shakespeare.

Mr. Torres continued, “As you all know, we begin all of our lessons with a background project. For this, we will have six groups that will research different topics. I have chosen the groups for you.” Some kids groaned at that, but eventually shut up to listen when Mr. Torres gave them a sharp glare.

“Group one, Elizabeth, Rebecca, and John.” John looked pissed off. Those two were common procrastinators. Logan hoped he didn’t get stuck with anyone like that, “Group two, Patton, Gabe, and Logan.”

Logan looked over at Patton, a little surprised, and a small smile did cross his face at the idea of spending more time with him. But then he glanced over at Gabe, across the room. He was picking his nose. Wonderful.

No one in the world could ever come up with a reasonable explanation as to how Gabe was placed into this advanced English class. He was completely immature, produced garbage work, and was  _ also _ a procrastinator.

Patton was really excited for a group project. Usually, he liked making everything ten times more extra than it really needed to be. It was even better when he had friends to do it with! He was thinking he could do a bunch of edits for a PowerPoint, if they choose to present it that way.

Still, he was a little bummed that Gabe was going to be a part of this. That kid did absolutely nothing. He should know, Patton’s been stuck in a group project with him before. When Logan had turned away from him to look at Gabe, Patton leaned around his desk, looking past Logan, to also see Gabe. Patton winced upon seeing him picking his nose, but he tried to make it seem like a smile. A very awkward smile.

Although neither of them waved, Gabe waved to them. With the hand that previously had an index finger up his nose. Logan knew damn well that he planned to do absolutely nothing.

Logan groaned slightly, and turned back to Patton with a small smile and a shrug, “I suppose we will just have to deal with him.”

“Oh… he can’t be  _ thaaat _ bad?” Patton was lying to himself there. He stayed quiet for a few seconds as Logan raised his eyebrow. He quickly added, “Okay no, he’s that bad.”

He had accepted the fact that Gabe was a slacker, most of the class accepted it, too, “I guess I could put in some more work, just so it seems like he did something other than put his name on it?” Even though Gabe definitely didn’t deserve his kindness since he was going to inevitably leave them both with a bunch of work.

“You are way too generous, Patton,” Logan rolled his eyes, but was smiling nevertheless. He added jokingly, “We might even be able to get him to look some things up.”

Honestly, Patton would be shocked if they got Gabe to even bother to know what it is they were learning. Scratch that-- if they got him to even spell Macbeth.

Mr. Torres had listed the rest of the groups, and had left them to talk for a minute or two before interrupting the class, “Alright, alright. Now that you have become acquainted with your groups, come to me for your specific assignments. Each group will have a different research topic surrounding Macbeth.”

Patton was excited to see what their assignment would be. He mostly just wanted to do a bunch of effects and transitions when it came to the slideshow. He always thought to make the other students pay attention, there would have to be some fun stuff involved. Maybe he could add some pictures of frogs. He loves frogs. People like frogs.

Logan went up to the teacher, talking for a bit, and came back to sit next to Patton after dragging Gabe over, “Okay,” he said, “We have to research the theatrical history of Macbeth. When they started production, when it was written, major historical events, etcetera.”

Patton understood, but like… one question still remained, “Could I add a picture of a frog in the report?” 

Then he got an even better idea, “Wait-- no! I wear something with a bunch of frogs. We all wear something with frogs!” He paused for a moment, “…If anyone asks why we added the little hoppers we could say because they croak… Like a lot of people from that time did!”

Normally, Logan would be very annoyed with a pointless joke such as that one, but he found himself letting out a small laugh at that. It was a dad joke, but it seems he’s strangely become accustomed to them. Especially since that one in particular was, admittedly, quite clever.

Gabe, on the other hand, was just staring at the wall. He turned back toward the group at the sound of quiet laughter, and said, “Huh?”

Well that certainly killed the mood.

Logan explained again, mildly annoyed, “Okay, Gabe. This is what we are going to do.” He explained it like Gabe was a baby that could barely understand him. Not too far off, honestly.

“Patton and I will do research, Patton can decorate the slides however he desires, and you can…” Logan actually had no clue what he trusted Gabe with, “You can…” He looked over to Patton for help.

“Uh--” He glanced at Logan before looking back at Gabe. He didn’t like being put on the spot out of nowhere, but clearly Logan was as lost as him. He thought quickly, “Uh… y-you can help us review it! At my house! There’s gonna be snacks! And then you can uh… add your name.” Patton was really hoping that was enough for the other, considering the fact he needed to make that all up right then and there. Then again, that would be fun. 

Gabe nodded, “Cool.”

Logan rolled his eyes. He had a feeling Gabe wouldn’t even try. He might not even show up. Still, he asked, “Alright, tell me your phone number, Gabe. I can arrange a group chat for us to discuss this project.” After getting Gabe’s number, Logan created the group chat. He looked back up at the group and asked, “Should we meet tomorrow?”

Patton was relieved that quick thinking worked. He knew Gabe probably didn’t even know how to spell his name, though. Patton looked back at Logan and nodded, “That works for me,” And taking his mind off of everything to joke around about a project, be mildly annoyed at Gabe, and spend some time with Logan did make Patton smile a little bit.

“Just one more thing--” Patton started speaking again, “So… Is it a no to the frog thing or…?” He was dead serious. For some inexplicable reason, he wanted to involve frogs, “I’m willing to tape a plush frog to my shoulder if it means we can add it in. Take your time deciding, I wouldn’t want you  _ hopping _ right into it!”

Logan rolled his eyes, smiling at the pun. And despite how strange this was, he wanted to make Patton happy, so he hesitantly suggested, “I could get a… tie with frogs on it, I suppose.” He smiled. This certainly was a weird method of getting Patton to smile, but it worked.

Patton was ecstatic that Logan was willing to participate in his frog thing, “So many people will be so confused,” He smiled, speaking enthusiastically. He couldn't wait. He needed to think about what he could do. Frog socks? Frog hat? Frog  _ suspenders _ ?? This will be fun for him to think about tonight.

And then Gabe turned around, looking at them again, “What about frogs?” He sounded confused.

“You… uh, you could just say ribbit,” Patton hesitated. He might as well include Gabe in the whole frog presentation thing in some way, right? He’s just hoping Gabe actually says ribbit instead of rabbit or something.

Mr. Torres announced what every group had chosen for their research topics before allowing them to grab laptops so they could begin. 

Logan walked up to the front of the room and grabbed three laptops. Gabe obviously wouldn’t participate anyway, but no way was he allowing himself or Patton to be blamed with reasoning like, ‘You two didn’t allow him to participate!!’

It’s happened before.

As Logan was getting the laptops, Patton thought about bringing something frog-related for Gabe just in case he forgets. Oh, who’s he kidding! Of course he’ll forget!

Patton also checked the time on his phone, just to see how much time was left for this class. He wasn’t urgent to leave, in fact, quite the opposite. He would stay long after the class ended if he could. He just didn’t want to have to be anywhere near Roman after school, but unfortunately for him the school day was almost over.

His thoughts were interrupted when a laptop was placed on his desk in front of him, and he looked up at Logan, who was now sitting down and opening his own laptop. Patton let out a small sigh. Yeah, he could just focus on this for now. Worrying could come later.

He allowed a small smile to cross his face.

Logan, unaware of Patton’s thoughts, created a google slide for the three of them and shared it. He instantly began researching specific topics about Macbeth, such as the time period and the methods for producing such a theatrical production. He already had a format for the google slide in his mind.

Since their presentation had to be about the history of Macbeth (as well as its effects on today’s theatre) he decided to begin with the creation of Macbeth, leading into its first production, and ending with the infamous myth that speaking Macbeth’s name in a theatre would doom the production and the reasoning for that superstition’s existence.

Though, Logan couldn’t really have concrete plans with Patton around. He was sure to make the slideshow much more interesting, and that wasn’t at all a bad thing.

_ Gabe’s _ way of messing things up, on the other hand… 

Logan ignored that for now, instead glancing up to see Patton already working. Patton was one of those people who used wikipedia, even though that was the thing all teachers hated. Usually if they asked, he just said he got it from textbooks. They did have to cite their sources for this project, though… Oh well, he can figure that out later.

Patton read through what he needed on the vague wikipedia page about Macbeth while working on the slide, clicking between the two tabs to type down important information. He glanced over at Gabe to see if he was working.

Gabe wasn’t working. He was on coolmathgames.

Upon seeing Patton looking at Gabe, Logan also glanced over at him, “Why are you playing games right now?”

Gabe rolled his eyes and looked up at Logan, “Dude, coolmathgames is gonna shut down soon.”

Logan rolled his eyes and barely contained an annoyed sigh, “Gabe. That was a rumor that was floating around  _ months _ ago. Even on the coolmathgames site it says that it will not shut down. There have been numerous articles talking about the rumor and how it is false.”

“Whatever, nerd.”

Patton couldn’t help but quietly giggle. He knew it was bad to slack off like that, but really? Coolmathgames? Then again, what did he expect from someone like Gabe. He turned back to Logan, “Just let him, he can work on it later.”

They both knew he wouldn’t work on it later.

The group (just Patton and Logan) continued to work until the bell rang. Logan stood and took all three laptops, placing them back in the cart at the front of the room. And then Gabe walked out without saying anything else, of course. Probably off to smoke weed or something.

Patton decided that maybe he could work on anything Gabe didn’t do while he was at home or with Roman during his drama practice. At least telling Roman that he had work to do would be a good excuse to ignore him for a bit.

He stood up and gathered his things, “See ya tomorrow, Logan,” He said hesitantly. He still didn’t quite want this to end. Still, he gave Logan a small wave goodbye as he walked out of the classroom. 

Logan waved back before Patton left. He also grabbed his stuff and headed out of the room.

Patton made his way down the hall to his next class. It wasn’t too far, but then again, with other people in the hall it was sometimes hard for him to pass through. He usually had to poke people and say, “Excuse me,” just to get through. Some people’s mottos around here was to just shove your way through, but Patton could never bring himself to do that.

Eventually, both Patton and Logan got to their next classes. At least Logan had one more class to distract him for the day. And once that final class was over, Logan was forced to walk around thinking about Patton and Roman and everything going on yet again.

Logan walked to his locker and eventually out to the parking lot to wait for Virgil.

Patton began walking to Roman’s drama class, as usual. He was tired, he didn’t even want to go. He took his sweet time getting there, but once he saw the entrance to the auditorium, he wanted to do literally anything but touch that handle. He didn’t want to be here.

It wouldn’t kill Roman if he didn’t show up, would it?

\------

Virgil headed outside to Logan’s car, still looking completely exhausted and mildly pissed off. The most likely reason was that he was still annoyed due to what happened during lunch. Logan drove them both home in silence.

And once Logan was alone at home, he turned on his computer and continued researching for the Macbeth project. For some inexplicable reason, this project was his top priority right now.

Then he remembered.

After less than a second of contemplation, Logan opened a new tab and went to Amazon. He looked up, “frog tie” in the search bar and found quite a few. He picked the one that was Amazon’s choice, also the least gaudy of them all. Dark green and navy stripes with small frogs embroidered along the blue stripes.

Logan smiled. He didn’t really mind spending ten dollars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You /know/ its gay when it’s associated with frogs.


	16. Chapter 16

The sidewalk was covered in constantly moving shadows of the trees above, and although the sun was out, there was a cool breeze going by. Thankfully the trees were there, because even while wearing shorts and a t-shirt, it was a pretty hot day outside. It was nice just being able to focus on the shifting trees, chirping birds, and the cute squirrel that just ran past.

Yeah, walking home had definitely been the best choice.

Despite how calm the surroundings seemed to be, there was a deep-seated, growing anxiousness taking root in Patton’s stomach. Although he felt great for, in a way, standing up for himself by not visiting Roman after school… He couldn’t deny that he was worried about how Roman would react.

Of course, only five minutes after the final bell had rung and Patton was far from the school, Roman began texting and calling. He asked where he was, why he wasn’t there…

And Patton just ignored him. He waited until he got home to even say _anything_ . And that felt _fantastic_. Today was going well.

When Patton did arrive home, all he did was send a vague text that he just got home and he was fine, and after that, he put his phone on silent and left it on the kitchen counter. He had no idea when Roman would stop trying to reach him. Patton decided it was best to just leave his phone there while he went upstairs to go check on the weasel children.

Both of them seemed fine. They were actually playing with each other, and without biting this time! Patton opened up the cage, deciding they probably needed a bath. Was he just stalling talking to Roman? Maybe.

Still though, they just kinda stunk. And after this, he could begin working on the project again.

It was pretty tough trying to get the two bitey children to take a bath. Mainly because George despised sharing his bath toys with anyone else, apparently. Stingy little brat. Besides that, Fred kept trying to bite Patton whenever he laid his hands on him. Thanks a lot Fred, now he’s gotta add even more Spiderman band-aids on his hands and arms. When they were eventually finished, Patton quickly dried them off before putting them back in the cage. Being a parent for these two is really hard. 

Patton had to go back into the bathroom to cover up more of the scratches and bite marks Fred made, and then cleaned up the mess the two made with all of the water and soap.

After Patton was finished with covering up all of the bites, he went down the hall into his parents' room. He didn’t have a laptop, but his mom had one that was supposed to be used for important stuff. This was important, so he should be allowed to use it. Besides, she worked 24/7 so it’s not like she’ll notice.

He took the laptop to his room, opened up his window, and sat criss cross on his bed before opening the laptop. It took a few tries to remember the password, but after a minute or so, he got it and went to the google slide presentation to keep working.

\------

After he added the frog tie to his wish list, prepared to pay for it later, Logan went back to his research for the project. He resumed where he left off, changing between tabs of credible sources and typing it down in the undecorated slides with the default font. No need to make it look nice, Patton would surely do that. Logan was better off sticking to what he’s best at, which is simply relaying information.

Besides, Logan had a feeling that Patton would prefer to decorate the slides. He seemed quite excited about the whole frog thing. He could also do any of the research he felt like doing, especially since Gabe will surely contribute nothing.

Due to the rules of the presentation, Gabe would have to read at least one slide out loud. It was required for everyone in the group to participate in presenting to the class. Logan planned to just give him the slide with the least amount of large, complicated words. Probably the least amount of words in general.

As Logan was typing up his fourth slide, his attention was directed to his phone at the sound of a notification. It was a text… from his father.

_[Logan, why did you add a tie adorned with frogs to our Amazon wish list?]_

_[It is a gift for someone.]_

Logan responded quickly, needing to lie about this. His father was very strict on looking professional, and something like this was surely not what he would want Logan wearing in public. Logan quickly sent another message.

_[I will pay for it, do not worry. Could you perhaps order it and I will pay you the cost of the tie? I would like to receive it as soon as possible, preferably by Friday.]_

Friday was the day that presentations were due, so Logan needed to get it relatively quickly. In the following messages, Logan had to convince his father of the reasoning for getting the tie, and he could hear the sarcasm and see the disapproving looks through his screen. 

Finally, he was able to convince his father to buy the tie. It took a few minutes, but it was well worth it if it could make Patton smile. That thought brought Logan’s mood back up, at least. He turned back to the computer and began typing again. He had about five slides done now, and the minimum requirement was eight slides, which included the title slide. That would be left up to Patton.

And then Logan saw a little bubble appear at the top of his screen, showing that someone else joined and is looking at the slides. One glance and Logan knew it was Patton, mostly due to the fact the profile picture was of a kitten. Logan found it strange that he couldn’t contain his grin.

Logan decided to go to the title slide and type a greeting.

_[Hello Patton]_

This was something he’d heard people do before. When working on projects they would talk to each other on slides or docs. Basically texting while working, but staying on one device. Logan’s never worked on a group project with people he particularly liked before, so this was a new experience.

Patton was about to start making another slide, but then noticed the little message on the title slide. Just that small greeting from Logan made him light up, and yet again Logan was helping Patton ignore everything negative in his mind, and he quickly responded back.

_[Hiya : >] _

Logan, upon seeing the message on his screen, let a small, fond smile cross his face. He thought the response was, honestly, quite cute. The thought was in the back of his mind, but he tried to ignore it. He didn’t give it a voice.

Still though, Logan was happy that Patton was messaging him in this weird, unique way. For some strange reason, it felt better than texting. Similar to that cliche of holding papers with messages written on them against a window for your neighbor to read.

Logan didn’t know why he enjoyed it so much. They had only exchanged two words and yet it gave him, strangely, a lot of joy.

He ignored that for now, instead resuming his focus on the project. He continued his research, still just putting down the facts for Patton to edit however he pleases later. They were meeting tomorrow, during class and after school, so they would have plenty of time to add transitions between slides and whatnot, as well as discussing who would read what slides.

After sending that message, Patton remembered-- how could he forget? The most important thing about this whole assignment! He got off his bed for a moment and went to his closet, searching through it for a minute or two before coming back out with a frog plush. He sat back on his bed with it. It was Pepe, wearing a blue shirt and red shorts.

Honestly it seemed like it scared Fred and George a little bit.

Patton looked over at Fred and George, who were just staring at the terrifying plush. Glancing between the stuffed animal and the two weasels, Patton opened the weasels’ cage and placed the Pepe stuffed animal inside. Honestly, Patton just thought they wanted to play with it and not that it scared the shit out of them.

“Do you guys like it?” But then Fred sniffed it and immediately backed away, “Knew you’d like it.” Clearly they didn’t.

Patton went back to work on his laptop, working on another slide. It shouldn’t be too hard to add all of the effects he wanted.

Glancing down at the clock in the bottom corner of his screen, Logan saw that it was nearly 7:00. He was about to stand up, but instead opened up the still empty title slide and typed out a quick message explaining where he was going. He waited for Patton’s response before heading downstairs.

_[Alrighty then (•^•)/]_

Well that sure is strangely adorable.

Logan decided to ignore that for now, but he still couldn’t stop himself from smiling at the message. After a second or so, he shut his laptop and walked downstairs to the kitchen. He was always tasked with making dinner due to his parents arriving home very late due to work. They would always get home long after Logan had gone to sleep, so Logan had to prepare something for them when they got home. They always just reheated whatever it was he made.

Patton, when he sent it, had giggled at his own message. He loved using those little emoticons because they were a fun way to show some expression through messages. Plus they were just adorable.

While Logan was gone, Patton continued to type up facts and add pictures before he started decorating. He added fun, colorful backgrounds, borders around pictures (most of which were related to the project, but obviously some that were just fun), as well as changing up the font to something a little more fun.

By the time Logan had returned, he looked over Patton’s slides and sighed. He didn’t want to upset Patton, but also... 

_[Patton, we need videos and pictures that are related to the content. This is an advanced class, and our grades could drop dramatically if we add in stuff like this.]_

After typing, Logan quickly added more to his message.

_[But I am sure Mr. Torres would not mind you showing some of the less topic-related images and videos after the presentation, just for fun. He is not as strict as he pretends to be. Maybe.]_

Logan was a little bit worried. This was a difficult spot to be in. He didn’t want to sacrifice Patton’s feelings (especially since Patton had already been very emotionally hurt as of late, so even a small thing like this would make Logan feel guilty) or he could sacrifice his grade. And neither option was very ideal.

Honestly, Patton was a little disappointed at first, because he really liked these fun pictures, but he understood. He was just being a little bit too enthusiastic again.

_[Got it, I’ll fix em]_

Patton switched back to his slides. Despite his disappointment, it did seem fair to limit his enthusiasm at least a little bit. He already got Logan to agree to wearing a frog tie, so at least that was going to be fun! It was nice of Logan to do something so… out of the norm, for him at least.

In the next hour or so, Patton deleted the unrelated images and found ones that fit their topic better while Logan continued to find sources and more information. And soon, it was getting late (at least by Logan’s standards) and he needed to get to bed. One of the things about him is his practicality, and he always got in bed by at least 9:30. Never later than 10:00

Logan opened up the now-decorated title slide, still with their little text box open, and typed. After doing so, he waited for Patton’s response.

_[I will be going to bed now. Goodnight, Patton. I will see you tomorrow.]_

_[Alright then! Don’t forget to get something frog related for the presentation.]_

Patton did a quick google search before adding a photo of the Pepe plush he had, popping it up on the slide.

_[It has been decided that I’m definitely bringing this.]_

Logan smiled at the message and the picture, though the thing was quite strange. Still, if Patton enjoyed it… maybe they could get Gabe to hold it? Unless Patton actually liked the thing.

Ignoring that for now (they could always discuss the logistics of what frog-related things each of them could do, now that Patton decided they would all partake in this), and instead, Logan went to the amazon page of the tie he bought, took a screenshot, and pasted the picture into the google slide presentation.

_[How is this?]_

Again, this was all pretty strange. Still, he couldn’t help the smile on his face, This was a ridiculous novelty tie-- admittedly less tacky than any of the other options, but still --if it made Patton happy, then this tie was better than any other tie in his closet.

Patton beamed at the sight of the tie, it was truly a work of art. They were nice colors and the little embroidered frogs were all sitting and they were so small! It was adorable. Besides, with the ever-so-stoic-and-smart Logan Sanders wearing something like this, it was sure to be fantastic. Patton knew that Logan wasn’t _actually_ like that, but he still pretended to be… and Patton giggled at the image of Logan wearing something that he probably found quite ridiculous.

_[It’s perfect!! Maybe tomorrow after school I could get us all frog stickers and then we could wear them in random spots. Not sure where they have them, though.]_

_[You could probably find them at someplace like Walmart or any other generic convenient store. I feel like stickers are something that could be sold at a variety of places.]_

Logan wasn’t particularly looking forward to wearing a sticker. Though, he has already crossed the line with buying a novelty tie. And it would probably make Patton happy if he wore a sticker. Maybe one.

_[Well, I will be looking forward to that, Patton.]_

He hesitated for a second before typing…

_[Goodnight again, Patton. I will see you tomorrow.]_

When Patton sent a goodnight message back, Logan finally closed his laptop. 

After Logan was gone, Patton decided to check if the closest Walmart had frog stickers. He did a quick google search of the Walmart in their town and… they did! He figured he could ask Roman to take him, if he wasn’t still mad, that is. Wait--

Patton had no idea how many missed calls or texts he had from Roman.

Well crap. He got off his bed and headed downstairs. His weasels ran up to the side of the cage closest to Patton as he stood, clearly not wanting to be left alone with the monster stuffed animal. Patton didn’t pay any mind to them though, instead needing to get downstairs as quickly as possible.

He made his way to the kitchen after booking it down the stairs, and quickly grabbed his phone off the counter. He switched it on… 12 missed calls and nearly 50 texts.

_Oh, the fear in Patton’s eyes._

Was calling the best option? Patton had no clue how Roman would even react. He would obviously freak out, but...

Well, how he did react was worse than Patton thought. Roman picked up instantly and immediately greeted him with, “WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?”

While Patton was about to deal with a straight-up reincarnation of a thousand demons from hell combined, Logan was calmly brushing his teeth and washing his face.

Afterward, he went to bed. He was still worried about Patton’s situation (and completely unaware of how much worse it was becoming this very second). Roman had probably forced Patton to avoid Virgil and himself, or at least convinced him to. Still, at least Patton seemed happy around his other friends. As long as he wasn’t alone with Roman, Logan and Virgil had agreed to let Patton fend for himself. When they were alone was when things got bad, as shown by Patton’s complete terror at the idea of being left alone with Roman, which Logan had seen this weekend.

However, the small conversations he had shared with Patton today, as well as Patton’s enthusiastic excitement for this nonsensical frog thing has inspired Logan to be a little more positive. Things are getting better, at least a little bit.

For the past five minutes, Roman has been yelling. And Patton was just silently listening.

“Are you done now?”

“No! I’m still angry…” He didn’t sound very angry though, not anymore. Just tired. Patton stayed silent on the other end for a few more seconds before Roman gave in.

“Fine, fine. I’m sorry for yelling, just-- why weren’t you answering?” Roman practically pleaded for an answer. Roman was just sick of how much Patton has been focusing on other people than him recently. He loves Patton and he’s just… so confused as to why everything seems to be going wrong.

Doesn’t give him an excuse.

Patton _could_ have answered Roman’s question from the beginning, but instead Roman decided to be dramatic, “I was working on a project. I didn’t know you were calling because I left my phone downstairs.”

“Okay, and!?” Roman couldn’t be any more of a drama queen than this, could he? “I wasn’t going to hesitate to hire a damn detective to search for you! You just--” He got a lot quieter, “You scared me.”

“I’m sorry, it won’t happen again, I promise--”

“Damn right it won’t,” Roman interrupted, “You didn’t even show up after school, and then you don’t even respond except for the world’s vaguest text, and leave me alone for _hours_!” It sounded like Roman was getting worked up again, “And now you act like it’s not a big deal! Ugh, you-- You’re just-- You’re walking to school tomorrow!”

And he hung up.

Patton had to stand there for a minute to process what just happened.

Logan hadn’t really been able to go to sleep yet, instead laying in bed and staring at the ceiling as he thought. It was hard for him to process a lot of what’s happened recently. It has only been _five days_ since he initially noticed Patton’s strange behavior at lunch, and since then his entire world has been flipped upside down. Logan can’t even begin to imagine how bad it’s been for Patton.

He has heard Patton cry twice now. Once over the phone very recently, only yesterday, in fact, and once in person. In the bathroom of Roman’s house when there was music blaring outside of the room and yet everything felt deafeningly silent save for the quiet sniffles and heartbreaking sounds coming from Patton as he cried into Logan’s shoulder.

Now, with the windows open and faint light from the moon and a nearby streetlamp coming through the windows alongside a delicate breeze, Logan stared up at his ceiling in silence as he recalled the event in severe detail. He has a feeling that his memory of that night is never going to go away any time soon.

But still, remembering Patton’s smile as they talked outside near the firepit… or his laughter as he joked about the custody of the weasels and got Roman to pretend to care about the weasels, thus leaving him embarrassed… or seeing him today cross his arms and glare up at Roman with defiance… or working on a project with him and being influenced to wear a ridiculous frog tie simply because it would get Patton to smile again…

…

Yes. All of this is worth it. So, so much.

Logan took a deep breath as he stood up and got out of bed. Quietly, he walked down the stairs and into his kitchen, leaving ten dollars on the counter alongside a note asking his father to purchase the tie. 

For some reason, his father expected him to be extremely responsible with everything in his life, and yet didn’t trust Logan with a debit or credit card. Hypocrite. Either way, he was getting that tie.

After making an adequate note, Logan made his way back to his bedroom.

As Patton stared down at his phone in mild shock-- well no, he wasn’t really surprised anymore… Still, he double-checked that his phone wasn’t on silent, just in case he got any more messages or calls from his boyfriend. He’s not gonna make the same mistake again. Not unless he wants to be yelled at. Again.

Letting out a sigh, he checked the time and saw that it was late. Since he was already in the kitchen, he grabbed some food for the weasels and went back upstairs to his room. He opened the cage, taking the Pepe plush out (thank god), and set two small bowls of their food inside before laying down in bed.

And after another ten or so minutes of just… thinking, Logan fell asleep. Not too far off from his usual 9:30, but these past five days haven’t exactly been ideal conditions for an adequate sleep schedule anyway.

\------

Patton, surprisingly, had fallen asleep pretty quickly. Most likely due to the fact that he was basically Roman-free for the rest of his night-- not including the shouts he got when he called him. Nope, not gonna ruin this for him.

Even though he slept fine, he had woken up a little later than his normal routine. It didn't matter to him because Roman wasn’t going to give him a ride anyway. Then again, it was only a ten minute walk, so…

But what’s with the noise outside? Honestly, Patton thought someone was legitimately throwing something at his window, except when he sat up and crawled over to the window that was above his bed, he opened the curtains and-- oh wow. Great! Perfect time for rain, huh?

The _one day_ Roman decided to NOT GIVE HIM A RIDE--

Okay. Calm down. Rain never hurt anyone.

Patton had no clue how long the rain would last, but he knew it would be pretty cold so he decided to wear something warm. He threw on some dark grey jeans, white sneakers, and a white and blue long-sleeved shirt, although anything that was above his knees was covered with a massively oversized grey cat hoodie.

Before leaving, he set up a small blanket in Fred and George’s cage, in case they got cold. You could never be too careful. After that, he grabbed his stuff and then headed out of the door, putting his hood over his head in an attempt to block out the heavy rain.

When Logan had woken up, almost an hour before Patton had, it was also raining just as hard then. It was actually the pounding of the rain on the roof above him that woke Logan up. Shutting off his alarm that was due to ring in a few minutes, Logan got up and took a shower, got dressed, and ate breakfast. And by the time he was done, the rain was _still_ absolutely terrible.

He put on a jacket quickly before leaving the house, huddling under the hood to make the short distance to his car. Once inside, he began the drive to Virgil’s house.

But as he was driving down the main road that connected the entire town, a road that was at least a mile and a half long and led to the highschool, he saw someone walking on the sidewalk.

_Who in their right mind would walk on a day like this…?_

As Logan drove by, the cat ears on the top of the hood of this person’s hoodie came into view. Shit. That was Patton. He was hunched over, hiding under the hood that was inevitably soaked through by now.

Logan, in a split-second decision, pulled over a little in front of Patton, put on his hazards, and ignored the honk of the car that had been behind him. He was following the laws, he wasn’t in anyone’s way… Still, he ignored that, and rolled down his window, ignoring the rain that was now quickly dropping down into the car. It covered his glasses and messed up his hair a little, but that didn’t matter.

“Hey Patton!” He yelled, “Get in!”

And when Patton quickly turned at the sound of his name, making almost immediate eye contact with Logan and undoubtedly looking very shocked, Logan smiled. 

The raindrops covering almost the entirety of Patton’s lenses meant he couldn’t really see clearly, but he instantly recognized the voice, and he turned to look at him. Patton was aware that he was just standing there, a little bit shocked. He hadn’t expected Logan to be here.

But it was raining and he was getting soaked, so of course he was gonna join him. He beamed, grateful that Logan had been there for him yet again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> three chapters  
> :)


	17. Chapter 17

Although his clothes were completely soaked through with rain, and his shoes the same, Patton avoided any puddles as he made the short distance to Logan’s car, climbing into the backseat as Logan rolled his window back up.

The rain continued to pound against the roof and sides of the car as they both tried to readjust. Logan wiped down the inside of the car door while Patton took his hood down, and then they both cleaned off their glasses. Still, Patton’s hoodie was completely soaked so it didn’t do much besides smudge the raindrops already on the lenses. Rain was literally the worst thing when you had glasses.

“Thanks, Logan! But-- sorry, I’m probably bringing in a lot of rain,” Patton said sheepishly. Despite how grateful he was to have Logan here again, he couldn’t deny that he felt like he was being a bit of a burden.

Logan shook his head, “It is not an issue Patton. I do not want you to freeze to death out there,” He assured as he ran his hand through his hair, trying to return it to how it looked before it got covered in rain in the short amount of time he’d had the window open. After doing so, he began to drive again.

“I thought Roman would be giving you a ride, like he always does?” Logan asked with a hint of suspicion. What the hell was going on?

Roman had been super suspicious of literally everyone lately due to Patton’s recent defiant actions, now that he was standing up for himself. Now would seem like (at least in Roman’s mind) the opportune time to be following Patton everywhere he goes. So why on earth would Roman not only leave Patton alone, but do so on a day where the rain was  _ this _ bad? He still loved Patton, clearly, so why would he not be willing to give him a ride?

“Oh-- um…” Patton didn’t really want to go into the specifics of what happened, so he just said, “He’s just being a drama queen again… I’m sure he’s fine now?”

Logan decided it was best not to voice his suspicions. Well, he was more angry than suspicious.

This is something he could imagine Roman doing out of pure spite. Logan knows how Roman works; one thing he knows is that Roman always checks the weather. Mainly so that he can “look impeccable whether it’s warm or cold, sunny or snowing” or some other extravagant, over the top explanation that included how perfect Roman was. Typical.

But because of that… it means he most likely knew it was going to rain, and yet, he didn’t offer to give Patton a ride.

Eventually they made it to Virgil’s house, and Logan sent him a text telling him they were there. A minute or so later, Virgil came out of the house and climbed into the passenger seat. He didn’t notice Patton right away, which is why he didn’t bother to watch his mouth.

“This rain is so fucking annoying. I just want to go back to fucking sleep…” He mumbled lethargically, sipping his coffee.

When Virgil had entered the car, Patton was ready to greet him, but then he heard those words and just--

_ “I WILL PERSONALLY PUT CHILI’S IN YOUR MOUTH AND THEN SOAP WATCH YOUR FRICK FRACKIN LANGUAGE GOSH DARN IT!”  _ That is the closest people will probably ever get to hearing Patton swear.

Virgil nearly had a fucking heart attack, though.

He whipped his head around to face the backseat with the most terrified expression, “PATTON WHAT THE FU--” He was cut off by Logan lightly smacking his arm and giving him a slightly terrified “don’t make it worse” look. Logan glanced at Patton and then back at Virgil.

Virgil scowled, “You scared me.” He took a second to calm down, “Why are you here? Isn’t your white knight boyfriend suppressed to be protecting his damsel in distress?” He said sarcastically.

Patton crossed his arms, still mad at the fact Virgil used that kind of language and was going to use it again if Logan hadn’t stopped him, “Don’t try to change the subject here! You used no no words. I am  _ hurt _ ! Disappointed! Betrayed! The worst thing about betrayal is it never comes from an enemy!”

Well, he isn’t wrong. Patton looked out of the car window, purposely ignoring Virgil. He was not going to answer to someone who dares to curse.

Still, Virgil could see Patton’s slight smile as he turned away from him. At least he was having fun, and seeing Patton even remotely happy had been pretty rare recently. Virgil rolled his eyes, smiling nonetheless, and decided that sacrificing a small heart attack for Patton’s happiness was worth it. 

In a few minutes, they made it to the school. Logan parked his car as close to the front door as he could get since the rain was still pouring and he wanted to get inside as quickly as possible. He’s sure the other two would definitely want that as well, especially since Patton is already completely soaked with rain.

As they were parking, Patton put his hood back up again. It was still damp, but he could deal with it for the short distance to the door. He quickly checked the phone for the time, but instead saw he had a text from Roman. It just said he was waiting for him inside.

Why not outside? Oh right, because  _ of course _ he wouldn’t want to be standing out in the rain.

Trying to ignore his annoyance at that, Patton unbuckled his seatbelt and scooted up in his seat to talk to Logan, “Thanks again for the ride,” his smile was not as happy as it was just a few minutes ago, but still better than it has been in a while. Mostly because he’s not around Roman at the moment. He opened the door, and before he stepped out he got situated with his backpack over his head to block at least some of the rain. “See ya guys,” He gave them both a small wave.

Logan glanced back at Virgil, and both of them could tell that he seemed a little bit less enthusiastic then he had been. Still, they needed to get inside, so Logan stepped out of the car, ready to follow Patton into the school.

Instead, he saw Roman on the other side of the glass doors leading into the building.

_ Roman had just seen Patton come out of Logan’s car. _

“Let’s uh… let’s go in through the side door,” Logan cringed as he spoke. He was well aware that he was on Roman’s shit-list at the moment.

“Okay?” Virgil was obviously confused. He had picked up on the fact that Logan had said ‘let’s’. Why was he nervous? Maybe he could ask later, because Logan was already walking and damn this fucking rain was already pissing him off again.

They hurried to the side door that led into the hallway outside of the auditorium. It was a slight detour, but not by much. Logan could handle getting rained on a little longer if it meant he didn’t have to face Roman at the moment.

Patton entered the school and immediately spotted Roman. He made his way over, very worried about how Roman was going to act. Completely unaware that Roman had even seen him come out of Logan’s car, Patton was only worried that Roman was still going to be annoyed by what happened last night. Patton really didn’t want to make a scene.

He smiled as he approached, acting as though nothing was wrong, “Hey!”

Roman stood with his arms crossed, not even bothering to greet Patton, “You got a ride from Logan?” And when Patton’s expression changed to one of confusion and mild guilt, Roman elaborated, “Didn’t I tell you not to go near him?”

“Well, it’s just that it was raining and he offered me a ride here, and I really didn’t want to be walking in the rain, so--”

“Okay and?” Roman interrupted, “You could’ve gotten a ride from literally anyone else.” When Patton didn’t respond, Roman thought he made his point clear, so he dropped it. He sighed, still feeling guilty about making Patton walk at all, “You-- you’re gonna get sick if you wear that hoodie indoors. Come on,” He began leading the way down the hall to Patton’s class.

As they stopped outside of the classroom, a few feet away from the door, Roman looked down to face Patton. He looked a little hesitant, and a little pained as he wrapped his arms around Patton’s waist and quietly asked, “You love me, right?”

Patton only nodded as a response.

“Good. Then you will make sure to stop going around Logan if I’m not there… Okay?” It honestly took a lot for Roman to ask that. He just-- he honestly didn’t know  _ why _ he was doing this. Logan has been his best friend for so long that they couldn’t even remember that far back into their childhood. And yet, something about the way Logan’s been acting… At the party he was apparently outside with Patton for a while, which is what Patton told him. And then he forced Roman to stop handing Patton drinks, which he was only doing for fun. Clearly Patton hadn’t minded…

And then he bought Patton a fucking weasel? Who does that? The way the two of them were joking around and the way Logan spoke to Roman when they were alone at Patton’s house just made it even worse. Something just seemed off. And Roman didn’t want it to continue.

Patton still hadn’t responded yet. As Roman realized that, his expression showed a little more pain, a little more urgency in his voice as he repeated, “Okay?”

And Patton wasn’t looking at him as he nodded. Not a single word came from him.

Tilting his head a little bit to try to see Patton’s expression didn’t really work, since Patton turned away from him. Roman took in a slightly shaky breath, obviously a little hurt by this as he just silently let Patton go. He watched Patton walk into the classroom before making his way to his own.

\------

Logan and Virgil walked their way around the school. Since they took the other entrance, they were a lot further from Virgil’s locker than they usually were. Eventually they made it to both of their lockers, and then walked to Virgil’s first classroom in somewhat awkward silence.

Before Virgil entered the room, Logan glanced around the hallway, seeing they were alone since they were in a relatively unused side of the school. So Logan blurted what he’s been thinking, “I am positive Roman absolutely hates me.”

“Well, duh. He probably caught on to what we’re doing, being around Patton all the time. You’re a lot more obvious than me, so he might not know I’m in on it.”

“No no, it is not just that. Roman is  _ suspicious _ of me. Like, he is trying to limit Patton from even going near me, like he does with Emile. He is suspicious like in the way he is with guys or girls that get too close to Patton, at least too close by his idiotic standards,” Logan ranted about the way Roman’s been acting, trying to figure out exactly  _ why _ he’s being so suspicious of Logan in particular.

Virgil nodded along, listening. Once Logan was done, he bluntly stated, deadpan, “Well, you do act pretty gay around Patton.”

Logan’s eyes widened in mild panic, “What is that supposed to mean? I thought one of your many sayings is, ‘You’re not really friends if you aren’t a little gay with them.’ Not that I agree, but you are being a bit of a hypocrite.”

Squinting his eyes and tilting his head, it seemed like Virgil was examining him. Logan glanced around nervously. What was he--

A small smirk grew across Virgil’s face, and after a few more seconds, it turned into a grin.

Logan knew that face. “No, wait--”

“Holy shit.”

“Virgil, do not make the assumption I think you are about to make.”

“You like Patton!” Somehow Virgil’s grin grew even more.

Logan immediately flinched at the statement and quickly denied it, “Virgil, I do not.”

“Mhm,” Virgil had a knowing look as he reached up to place a hand on Logan’s shoulder, “Sure you don’t, buddy,” and he ended the conversation by walking into the classroom.

Logan groaned as he turned and began walking to his own classroom. Great. Now he had two problems to deal with. Virgil and his… ships? Is that the word?? He shook his head, trying to ignore Virgil’s strange obsession with shipping his friends. Now is not the time for that.

Logan was able to make it through his first class period, only minimally thinking of what Virgil had said.

…

Okay that's a lie. He thought about it a lot.

Virgil was amazing. A great friend. But  _ goddamn _ he could be very annoying sometimes when he wanted to be.

Logan knew one thing for sure. He had never once thought of anyone with romance in mind, especially not Patton. He simply cared for Patton, as he cared for Virgil all of those years ago. He knew for a fact that his care did not go beyond concern for a friend.

In fact, Logan had suffered through most of his classes battling this particular problem out in his mind. He could focus if he really tried, but usually his brain tended to wander whenever he wasn’t actively trying to focus on his teachers or his work. That seemed to be happening a lot lately.

And, before he knew it, it was lunch. As he switched out his school supplies with his lunch while at his locker, he wondered if Roman would force Patton to stay away from him and Virgil today. It was the most likely situation, considering Roman saw Patton come out of Logan’s car this morning.

He made his way to the lunch room and sat down. Virgil came by, and-- damn it the smirk from earlier was there. Great, he’s going to make fun of Logan’s supposed romantic feelings again.

And yes, Logan was right in that assumption. As Virgil was about to make fun of Logan for his alleged crush on Patton (honestly Virgil wasn’t sure, it was just fun to tease Logan about stuff like this), he saw Patton and Roman enter the room and that shut him up.

Virgil sat down quietly, keeping his eyes on them. When Logan saw Virgil’s immediate shift in expression, he also turned around to look. Glancing at Logan, Virgil saw that he was also watching the two with complete focus.

As usual, Roman had made sure to walk with Patton to lunch. Neither of them were as talkative as they usually were. Patton due to his array of completely horrible emotions, and Roman due to him still being slightly annoyed. That, however, was about to change.

When they arrived, Patton was about to head off to where Remy and Emile were, but Roman stopped him, “It’s my turn to choose where we sit, remember?”

And before Patton could say another word, Roman began to lead him to a table close to the center of the room. That’s where a couple of his other friends were.

Roman happily greeted them all, his arm wrapped protectively around Patton’s waist yet again. Patton honestly didn’t have too much of a problem with these people, but he wasn’t exactly close with any of them, so he just gave a quick wave to them as they both sat down.

When Roman had led Patton to the table filled with a mixture of theater and jock kids (the two sides of school popularity that had been mixed together into a group by Roman Prince himself), Virgil groaned. They were nice, but they could be _ very  _ obnoxious. Theater kids were loud, and so were the jocks, but now with just a little more stupidity sprinkled in.

Logan had much the same reaction as Virgil when it happened.

“He looks kinda uncomfortable…” Virgil commented.

Keeping his eyes on Patton and Roman, Logan responded, “He just… does not know those people very well. I hope that is the only issue.” Remembering this morning, Roman’s cold glare through the far away glass doors of the school, Logan was sure it wasn’t the only issue.

Logan and Virgil stayed relatively silent at their table. They ate their meals while giving the occasional glance back at Patton and Roman, just to make sure everything was going alright.

And it seemed like it was actually not crashing and burning, surprisingly. Roman was chatting with a couple of his friends. He wasn’t paying much attention to Patton, at least not for the first few minutes. While he was distracted, Patton had mostly been nodding along with whatever Roman said. It was obvious Roman had calmed down now, not as irritated as he was earlier.

Virgil’s worries had been eased by the seemingly decent situation. No one was screaming, crying, or anything else, so it seemed at least slightly good? Maybe?

Logan was just trying to shut everything out as he ate. He didn’t need to be so involved in Patton’s life to a point that he worried about him every second of every day.

Everything was, at this moment, going pretty well. Roman was sure having fun. Patton didn’t pay much attention, but when he did, he realized that Roman’s friends were actually pretty funny. He knew of the theater kids since he was involved in musical, but these were the people who got all the huge roles, and when even the chorus members never spoke to band kids, what did Patton expect not being spoken to by these people? But honestly, they were actually really cool.

Yeah, they could be obnoxious sometimes, especially the jocks here, but besides that, they weren’t bad people.

About halfway through lunch was when things started to get maybe a little out of hand. Some of Roman’s friends became curious about Patton, especially the ones who had never met him before, and they started asking some questions. Obviously that led Roman to brag about Patton, telling his friends just how great he is and how lucky Roman is to have him.

It honestly made Patton a little embarrassed. Anyone would be when they were being complimented so openly in front of so many people they’d never even spoken to before.

But then Roman got an idea. He grinned, and leaned over to whisper the idea in Patton’s ear, and immediately Patton felt his face get a little warmer, but he definitely wasn’t happy about it. Appalled and embarrassed, he crossed his arms and said, “Nope! No way! Not happening!”

Upon hearing Patton’s voice raise, Virgil instantly turned to face the table. He was saying no? Saying no to what?

Virgil continued to watch, increasingly getting more and more concerned.

Roman rolled his eyes, responding, “Come on, it’s just to show them how much I love you! It’ll be quick, I promise?” Patton glared at him for a moment, but all of Roman’s friends were just telling him to do whatever it was, since they were all curious.

And, just like that night at the party, playing truth or dare while surrounded by people yelling at him, Patton gave in to peer pressure yet again. This time, sadly, he didn’t back out. After a bit of hesitation, with slumped shoulders and eyes cast down at the floor with a glare, Patton sat on Roman’s lap.

“See? Not that bad,” Roman said with a small smile.

Logan tried to just focus on his food, but was struggling a bit. Patton was probably just saying no because they asked him to sign up for musical as a cast member or something. Something dumb like that. Nothing else. He just-- he didn’t want to worry about Patton every second of every day and it already seemed like he was doing that and Patton surely didn’t need him  _ that _ much, he could fend for himself--

Then he felt Virgil poke his shoulder, “Logan, look…”

From an outside perspective, it wouldn’t look bad. They were boyfriends and Patton could sit on Roman’s lap whenever, but with the current situation and Patton’s achingly obvious discomfort, Virgil was actually freaking out at the moment.

Logan turned the second Virgil told him to. And once he saw what was happening, his expression froze into one of mild shock and disappointment. He turned back to look at the table with an unfocused gaze. He let out a small breath, barely even noticeable, but his shoulders slumped as he did so.

As soon as he realized just how he reacted, Logan blinked and shook his head, thinking,  _ Why did I just react that way? What? _

Of course, Virgil caught all of that, “Logan,” and when Logan looked up at him, he wasn’t smirking. He was serious, “You actually like Patton? I’m totally not wrong about this.”

Logan quickly corrected him, “No, I am sympathetic toward Patton and his current situation, nothing else. He is our friend.”

“Mhm,” Virgil was trying to make light of it. He needed  _ something _ . Literally anything. He just needed to distract himself from what was happening. Roman was… not very observant toward Patton’s discomfort.

As a minute passed in which Roman’s friends cheered and conversation went on, Patton had just tried to ignore everything going on. Roman also carried on like it was nothing, only occasionally giving Patton little pecks on the cheek whenever he felt like it.

_ But then it happened. _

Roman, the sneaky bitch, thought it would be a good idea to try another move on Patton. While Patton was distracted trying to keep up with whatever it was Roman’s friends were saying, Roman decided to move one of his hands to Patton’s thigh.

Patton instantly felt his face heat up, and his eyes widened in slight panic. Not good. Definitely not good. He held his breath for a moment, and even though his face was bright red, he turned halfway to face Roman with a deathly scowl. Although quiet, his voice was both calm and enraged as he spoke, “Take. Your hand. Off of me.”

After a second of silence between them, Roman stared at Patton before removing his hand. That was definitely not the reaction he was expecting. Everyone around them was still talking, unaware of what just happened.

Once the hand was gone, Patton faced forward again and continued to speak quietly, only so Roman could hear, “Touch me again and I will walk out of here  _ immediately _ .”

It stayed silent between them until the end of lunch.

Neither Virgil nor Logan could hear any of the conversation, obviously, but they could tell that something had gone very, very wrong. Roman was glancing around nervously and he somehow looked even  _ more _ uncomfortable than Patton. What the hell happened?

Before either of them even had a chance to wonder what had caused so much uncomfortable tension, the bell rang. They stood and threw away what was left of their lunches and then they separated to go to their classes. Still, as Logan and Virgil parted, they shared a look. They knew things were escalating with Patton and Roman.

Logan began to walk toward the hallway that led to his English class, but before entering the hallway, he glanced back at the table that Patton and Roman were at. 

Patton had been very, very quick to remove himself from Roman the second the bell rang. Clearly, he was upset. Logan watched as Roman got up, waved goodbye to his friends, and began walking alongside Patton. He saw Roman reach to wrap his arm around Patton’s waist, but quickly grimace and pull his arm back. At least he wasn’t that stupid.

Once they began heading in his direction, Logan turned around and started walking to his class. He made it there quicker than usual in his hurry to get away from Roman, and he sat at his desk and waited for Patton to arrive. 

What would he even say? Should he say anything? Even from the distance between them during lunch, Logan could feel the extremely tense air surrounding that table…

There was complete silence between Roman and Patton as they walked. Well, not complete silence. Because Roman tried to speak. Patton was the one who didn’t even respond. 

As if Roman deserved to hear anything from him.

When they did reach the class, Roman looked down at Patton and with a guilty expression, he very quietly and very hesitantly said, “...Love you?” Patton only glared in response.

This was  _ Patton _ . If he didn’t want to say even a single word, it was obvious he was pissed off beyond all hope of reconciliation.

“Okay look, I’m so sor--” Roman was cut off by Patton simply turning around and walking into the classroom. He watched through the doorway as Patton sat down directly next to Logan. Roman took in a breath to calm himself down. It’s fine. Everything’s fine…

He quickly walked away from the room, heading to his own class.

Logan had looked up from his desk the second he saw Patton’s white sneakers enter the room from his peripheral vision.

But then he saw Patton’s face.

Holy shit, Logan was bad at identifying emotions but Patton’s rage was the most obvious thing he’d ever seen. Patton was  _ fuming _ , and Logan was honestly a little bit terrified. With this much anger Logan was scared to even  _ talk _ to Patton.

Logan stared down at his desk as Patton sat down next to him. He glanced up at Patton, and curse his endless worrying, because he just needed to talk to Patton. Still, Logan was scared it might just send him over the edge.

“Are you… alright?” He said it quietly, with a remarkable amount of concern in his voice despite his mild fear.

“I’m great!” That tone of voice did not sound great at all. “I think I’ve never felt better!” He was louder than usual, and he honestly looked like he was planning how to make a murder look like a bloody accident. He was  _ mad _ .

Patton didn’t even bother to look at Logan as he spoke. He just stared at his desk with a small smile that looked very forced.  _ Honestly, he could cuss if he wanted to but that would probably be a little too much-- _

“Okay… Just know I’m here to listen if you need to talk to someone?” Logan wasn’t really sure if Patton knew about the fact that he sometimes slips up with contractions only when he’s nervous, but Logan sure as hell heard himself mess up. Well, guess he’s nervous. Patton  _ was _ being very terrifying right now.

Before the interaction could continue any further, the bell rang and Mr. Torres walked in, immediately beginning to speak, “Alright, everyone. Today we will begin our next grammar and vocab lesson since we finished our test last week. We will not be working on the class projects today, since you have a week to do that.”

Logan let out a small, relieved sigh when he heard that bit of information. Honestly, he doesn’t think he could handle dealing with Gabe today. He doubts it would be any better for Patton, either.

This was exhausting. Patton was just exhausted. He was really only mad at Roman, but what he did got him so pissed off that he had to refrain himself from taking it out on people just because Roman wasn’t here. If he did end up taking it out on anyone else, he would obviously apologize every single day until the end of time.

He listened to what they were doing for the day, but his mind was somewhere else. Patton really couldn’t care less. Right now he just wanted to-- what did he even want? To yell out his anger into a pillow? That wasn’t really much of an option at the moment, though.

Mr. Torres led them through the new vocab packet, which was about 50 words (most of which were words Logan already knew, but he wasn’t going to brag about that), as well as through the grammar notes.

That, in total, took up almost the entire class. Because, despite the fact that this was an advanced English class, there were some very dumb people in this room… Gabe.

By the end of the class, Patton seemed calm enough to talk to, but he was still mildly irritated at the thought or mention of Roman. Like if he saw Roman at this moment, instead of having the urge to punch him, Patton would only want to angrily walk away instead.

Logan desperately wanted to know what Roman had done earlier to provoke such a strong reaction from Patton, but he could tell that Patton was not up for conversation about literally anything at the moment. So, he simply ignored it, and said, “Goodbye, Patton,” when the bell rang.

They had already agreed to meet up as a group this afternoon, so Logan would see him later once he’s hopefully calmed down further. As he walked out of the room, he gave Patton a reverent smile and a wave.

As Patton was gathering his stuff, he had heard Logan bid farewell. He returned the wave and gave a small smile. Once he was gone, that’s when it hit him. Patton realized he was being a jerk earlier. Obviously he had calmed him down, so he was able to figure that out now, but now he does feel a little guilty. Logan was concerned for him and Patton gave him a really sarcastic reply.

This was going to be bothering him for a while, damn it Roman. Still, he could always apologize later, since they were meeting up today.

Logan was slightly disappointed for the remainder of his classes. He didn’t let it distract him from his work, however.

Patton had obviously been very upset. Logan didn’t blame him for his strong reaction, although it had upset Logan. Slightly. But he wasn’t going to admit that, especially not to Patton. He didn't need to make him feel even worse.

As his final class ended, Logan headed out into the hallway, to his locker. He collected his stuff and went out one of the side entrances to the school, walking to his car. Once there, he waited for Virgil, like always.

And soon, they were on the road. They stayed relatively silent, thinking on their own about the problems going on. Eventually they made it to Virgil’s home and he was dropped off.

Logan drove to his own house, making a quick stop to drop off all of his school supplies and pick up his laptop to bring to Patton’s house for the project. 

\------

Patton was making his way to the exit, excited to finally get out of this building. But then he saw Roman. Without any hesitation, he stopped, took a step, and spun right back around. Patton was not going to deal with this right now.

“Patton! Patton, wait!” Roman started walking after him, he really was trying.

Too bad.

“What? Can’t hear you, going home!” Patton retorted, glaring at the ground as he weaved his way around people to another exit.

“Exactly, I thought I could drive y--”

Patton immediately interrupted, “Walking! I’m walking home.”

“But I was just gonna--”

“Leave me alone,” Patton suddenly turned around. His voice was filled with fury and annoyance, he just wanted Roman  _ gone _ . He was now face to face with Roman, glaring up at him.

When Roman didn’t respond, instead stood there looking shocked and a little bit hurt, Patton just walked away. And Roman didn’t stop him. He was well aware that he had actually fucked up big-time.

As Patton walked, Roman was constantly blowing up his phone with texts and calls. It was a little odd considering the fact Roman would most likely be all dramatic like on his knees begging for forgiveness, but he wasn’t. 

What was he doing instead? Coming up with every possible way to make it up to Patton because Roman was honestly  _ very _ scared. What was he meant to do? Roman had to fix this somehow.

By the time Patton returned home, he had calmed himself down once more. Taking walks was usually a good way for him to let negative energy out. And the rain had calmed down hours ago, so it was actually very nice outside. There were still puddles on the sidewalk and the smell of rain was still around, even though the sun was out. It was beautiful outside, even if it wasn’t so beautiful inside.

Closing the door behind him felt like the ultimate relief.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two chapters  
> :)


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> just some fluff before all hell breaks loose

A few minutes after dropping his stuff off at home, Logan was nearing Patton’s house. As he approached, he decided to park along the street instead of in the driveway. He had no clue when Patton’s parents would come home from work, so this seemed like the best choice.

After parking, he stepped out of the car and walked to the door. There was no sign of Gabe, and honestly Logan wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t even have a license to drive here. It was probably best that he wasn’t going to show up, if only for the sake of actually getting work done.

Patton’s house was normally very quiet after school, so it wasn’t hard for Patton to hear the knock at the door. He had been so caught up in his relief of escaping Roman that he forgot they were meeting up for the project. Gosh darn it.

He had already gone upstairs, so he quickly let Fred and George out of their cage before stepping back downstairs. As he reached for the door handle, Patton realized--

He forgot snacks. As if this day couldn’t get any worse.

Still, he could get them later. He answered the door, greeting Logan, “Hey!”

“Salutations, Patton,” He replied before looking behind him, glancing around. He turned back to face Patton. “In all honesty, I would be glad if Gabe did not arrive.”

His previously weak smile was replaced when a genuine one spread across his face at what Logan said. As much as he wanted to give Gabe a chance, it was true that he would definitely bring down his mood even further than it had already been today.

Logan felt his own smile grow at the sight of Patton looking happy again. They looked at each other for a second before Patton stepped aside so that Logan could enter.

“I didn’t have enough time to make any snacks but you can help yourself to whatever we have if you want?” Patton suggested. Maybe when they take a break later, he could make something small. 

Logan walked inside, assuring Patton after his comment, “It is alright. I never expected you to make snacks, so unless you want to, I do not mind not having any.” Judging by the determination in Patton’s eyes, it seemed like snacks were inevitable. What else did Logan expect, honestly?

He pulled out his laptop as he sat down on the couch, and he stopped typing in his password to listen to Patton as he spoke.

“I’m gonna head upstairs to grab my mom’s laptop real quick.”

Logan nodded in acknowledgment, continuing to type in his password and pull up the google slide while Patton was gone. He began working on condensing the words on the slides into concise bullet points so that it was quick and easy to read for the rest of their classmates. Thankfully everything was already fully decorated by Patton, so there wasn’t much work to do.

Patton soon came back downstairs with the laptop as well as the Pepe frog plush he was going to be bringing to the presentation. He was hiding it behind his back. He set the laptop on the couch and then made his way behind it.

With a raised eyebrow and much confusion, Logan watched as Patton walked behind the couch and kneeled down so he was hiding behind it. What the hell was he doing?

And then the frog popped out from behind the couch.

“Hippity hoppity, welcome to my property,” Patton spoke for the frog. 

Logan had not expected that in the slightest, so a surprised laugh came from him. Then, after ‘the frog’ was done speaking, the completely moronic joke somehow caused a large grin to cross his face.

This, of course, was very stupid. It was a stuffed frog. And yet, Logan couldn’t help his happiness. He was glad that he had become accustomed to Patton’s sense of humor. Before, he despised dad jokes or anything else of the same caliber of humor.

“Patton, what is that thing?” He eventually questioned, grin still on his face due to the absurd situation. Patton’s smile was bright and cheerful yet again, and honestly, if this dumb little stuffed creature contributed to that smile, then Logan didn’t mind how stupid the thing looked.

Patton had to stop himself from letting a giggle escape, this was the frog talking now. He remained hidden behind the couch, “But Logan, whatever do you mean? What thing? It’s just you and me, pal.” He had to use his other hand to cover his mouth from laughing, “I’ll be filling in for Patton today, my name’s--” He had to think of something, “Uh… Timrek.”

Yes, Kermit backwards. That worked.

Logan rolled his eyes, “Mhm, of course,” He replied sarcastically. This act was possibly, maybe, slightly annoying. But Patton didn’t need to know that. It seemed like he was having fun, and he had clearly had a terrible day, so Logan could deal with this for now.

He turned back to his laptop and began sorting through the information, aware of Timrek near his shoulder. That thing was honestly a tad bit creepy.

Patton brought the frog back down and came out from his hiding spot, beaming as bright as the sun, “What did you think of my new friend?” He enthusiastically asked Logan.

“Well, I am glad that it is Patton I am speaking to now,” He said sarcastically, though truthfully. He was glad to provide Patton some entertainment after his difficult day, however he was still here to get work done. He turned back to the presentation.

Wait-- he quickly turned to face Patton again when he realized what Timrek was, “Wait, you sent a picture of that yesterday. Are you bringing him to the presentation?”

Patton nodded in response to his question. He held the plush in his arms. “Yep!” He walked out from behind the couch and back to where he had placed the laptop before. He set Timrek down next to him as he picked up the laptop. As he adjusted himself sitting criss cross on the couch with the laptop in his lap, he elaborated, “It was the only thing I could find in my closet that fit the theme. Also, Fred and George seem to like it a lot!”

_ No they didn’t. _

Logan had already finished compacting about two slides into bullet points in the time he’s been here so far. Another aspect of the grade was adding animations within and between slides. During class they had discussed leaving that up to Patton.

And within the next hour, they worked and talked. Small jokes and occasional conversation popped up here and there as they worked, and Logan had even shown Patton the linked sources at the bottom of wikipedia pages to avoid teachers yelling, which had been a wonderful thing to learn, but eventually they were completed.

Patton had done the slide transitions, Logan had finished compiling all of the information into concise bullet points, and both had checked for any spelling or grammar errors.

And of course, Gabe, wherever he was, provided no help whatsoever. He didn’t even show up online to type a single thing. Logan was planning to discuss giving him the slides with the least information to read aloud, since everyone had to contribute to the reading of the slides in front of the class.

Patton checked the time, decided that now was a good time to get some snacks. After that, they could discuss how they would be presenting and stuff. He placed the laptop aside and stood up from the couch.

“I’m gonna go check on Fred and George, then I’ll come back down and make snacks.” It wasn’t debatable, he’s making snacks.

He began walking toward the stairs, but stopped and looked back at Logan when he spoke.

“Wait, Patton,” he paused for a second, “Bring the weasels down?” Logan didn’t really want to admit how much he loved the little animals, but he wanted to see them.

Once he was asked to bring the two wild children down, Patton grinned, “Oh, okay then!”

He walked upstairs to his room. The two had just been sleeping on his bed, but once they heard Patton enter, they both immediately sat up and stared at him. Patton gently picked them up, placing George on his head and holding Fred in his arms.

Fred was still being a little brat. He started biting and slightly scratching at Patton’s arms, but by now Patton has learned to ignore it. He walked back downstairs with the two weasels.

When Logan saw them, he couldn’t help the fond smile that crossed his face. 

Now that the presentation was complete, Logan really had nothing left to do here. But he knew that the logical conclusion of ‘you’re done, leave’ didn’t make much sense anymore. It wasn’t at all the best choice. Patton was going to make snacks, and the weasels were down here, and Logan just wanted to spend time with Patton while he was here.

Patton gently placed both of the weasels down on the couch. George didn’t really care that Logan was around, but he did care that the absolute abomination of a frog is on this couch. With zero hesitation, George jumped off of the couch and decided that sitting on the floor would be better. He really hates that thing.

Fred, on the other hand, made his way over to Logan and began sniffing his hand when Logan reached over to him. Fred recognized and loved Logan, so of course he didn’t scratch or bite him.

While that was going on, Patton headed to the kitchen to start making something to eat. Before doing so, he did glance back at Logan and Fred. It was just adorable!

Logan pet Fred as he watched George slowly back away from the couch, eyes focused on Timrek. Well, clearly George hates it just as much as Logan.

While George was giving Timrek the best death stare a weasel could manage, Fred stared at George. These two sure do have a thing for staring at things. Fred let Logan pet him for a few more seconds before deciding to stand up and knock Timrek on the floor, which obviously scared George.

And then the two of them decided to climb on top of it.

Logan knew that Patton, for some strange reason, liked that frog a lot. So, he was contemplating letting the weasels destroy the thing before he eventually gave in. He leaned over from his seated position and grabbed Timrek off the floor. 

As he reached down, both of the weasels decided to playfully bite his hand. At first, they didn’t let go of the toy, but when they did, they both tried to get it back. Logan had no clue how to deal with pets, but at least he got the frog away from them? He placed it back in its previous spot.

George tried climbing on the couch but fell right back on the ground with a thud. Fred did the same, but instead of falling, he just got stuck with his claws sinking into the side of the couch.

Logan smiled, looking down at the animals. How was something so dumb so completely endearing?

Hiding the frog under the pillow was probably a good choice. After doing so, he helped remove Fred from the side of the couch, gently placing him on the ground.

After looking around for a few seconds, it seemed that they believed Timrek was completely gone. George peacefully fell back asleep on the floor. Fred decided to walk into the kitchen to check up on his other dad.

Patton had already made some kool aid and was in the middle of making grilled cheese sandwiches.

Taking the opportunity, Logan decided to lean down and pet George. Obviously, George didn’t like him quite as much as Fred did, but at least George let Logan pet him. He simply opened his eyes and stared up at Logan, and when Logan removed his hand a few seconds later, George laid his head back down again, closing his eyes.

These two had certainly grown on Logan quite quickly.

After a few boring seconds of sitting and doing nothing, Logan decided to follow Fred, assuming he went into the kitchen. He stood up from the couch and headed through a small archway which led to a hallway. At the end of the hallway was the kitchen, and Logan saw Fred’s black and white tail go behind the corner leading into the linoleum covered flooring.

Logan walked into the cozy kitchen with the smell of grilled cheese sandwiches drifting through the air. Right across from him, there was a large glass door that led to the backyard, and it was letting in some natural light into the already bright kitchen. The counters were made of a light, beige wood with marble countertops, and many decorations around. There was a calendar hung up on the wall alongside a corkboard filled with thumbtacks, holding up family pictures, childish drawings, coupons and notes. The counters had something on it at every corner. A bowl of fruit, a knife block, a vase of slightly-wilted flowers… compared to Logan’s house, this place just felt alive.

He saw Patton standing at the stove, and, while standing in the doorway, Logan spoke up, “I am fairly certain that the weasels hate Timrek. They just tried to attack it.”

When Patton heard Logan’s voice, he glanced back for a second before looking back at the stove. He didn’t want it to burn, so he responded while continuing to watch the sandwiches, “What? Really? I thought they liked it! They seemed fine with it not too long ago.”

_ They really weren’t fine with it at all. _

“Maybe they were just playing?” Patton guessed. He wasn’t really all too disappointed, considering the fact he never did too much with the stuffed frog anyway. Before now, it just kind of existed in his closet and never left.

Fred roamed around the kitchen before stopping right next to Patton, smelling the food. He was hungry and was more than prepared to beg. Logan watched as Patton gently nudged Fred away as a way of saying no.

“Do you want me to take him away so that he does not try to get the food? Or perhaps I could feed him while you cook?” Logan suggested. He really didn’t know how to go about feeding them, though. He fed them by hand once, this weekend, but did they have food bowls? Or were they always fed by hand? Either way, Logan wanted to be helpful.

“Sure, you can feed him, but he isn’t gonna leave you alone even when he’s full,” Patton explained, “If you want, you can take him outside to catch his own food, but I usually just give him whatever meat I have in the fridge.”

This  _ was _ supposed to be a peaceful household, but it’s pretty difficult to do that when your children are exclusively carnivorous. 

Fred was still standing next to Patton, not even caring that Patton was trying to get him away.

“Alright,” Logan replied. He walked over to the fridge and found a container with ham in it. The second he opened the bag, Fred started waddling over to him. Logan bent over to hand Fred a piece of meat. After Fred devoured it, George came into the room, presumably smelling the food.

While Patton finished up making the grilled cheese sandwiches, Logan began handing both of the weasels food. He had now sat on the ground, finding it easier to do so than continually lean down to feed them. It was a bit tedious because they always wanted more, but Logan didn’t mind. It was, admittedly, cute to watch them eat.

Why did humans find carnivorous animals devouring and tearing apart the flesh of other animals cute? It mainly depends on the animal, it seems. Humans find certain animals more cute than others.

Logan thought that through as he kept handing the weasels food. After about twenty pieces each, Logan became a little concerned. While standing up, he asked, “Patton, when is the correct time to stop feeding them? You said they would go on forever, but obviously you need to cut them off eventually, right?”

By the time Logan had asked that, Patton was completed. He put both of the sandwiches on a plate before turning to look at Logan. “Well, I guess around eight whole pieces would be the right amount. I wouldn’t want them getting sick or anything.”

Logan’s eyes widened in slight panic, “Uh…”

“How much did you feed them?” Patton approached Logan, asking just to make sure.

Lying genuinely  _ did _ seem like it might be a good idea, and Logan considered it for a second before quickly dismissing it. Patton hated lying, so… “Well… It was around twenty?” He confessed quietly. He messed up, but hey, the weasels were happy? Plus side?

Patton was, obviously, a little shocked at that answer. That was clearly way over what he usually fed them. Last time he accidentally fed them a little too much, only about five pieces more than usual, and they were sick for a whole day, but  _ twenty _ ?

“Oh, um…” Patton looked down at the two. They seemed alright now, but later they would probably vomit at some point. “Oh jeez-- um, that’s okay. I’ll be right back.” He turned off the stove and hurried out of the kitchen. A towel was definitely required in case they did throw up.

Logan sighed. Damn it. The consequences of this would probably be very bad.

He stood and walked back into the living room. Both of the weasels followed him there, staring intently up at him like he was their god. He had given them a ton of food, so obviously they would think that.

Patton quickly returned with a bath towel, placing it on the couch before gently lifting each weasel one by one and placing them onto the towel. He then went into the kitchen and came back with a small bowl filled with water, setting it down next to them. He already knew they would need to drink water, even if they didn’t want to. 

They were gonna be fine… hopefully.

Patton was a little worried, but tried not to show it. Changing the topic, he turned to Logan and said, “Oh! I forgot the snacks. Be right back.” He turned around again, back into the kitchen, and came back with the sandwiches and drinks. It was a bit of a balancing act having the plate of sandwiches and two cups, but he managed by placing one of the cups on the plate.

When Patton came back with the food, Logan stood to take one of the cups, just so it was a little easier for Patton to place the plates down. After doing so, Patton handed him his sandwich and he accepted it with a small, “Thank you,” still feeling a little guilty.

He looked down at the weasels next to him on the couch. Logan was very concerned.

“I am sorry for overfeeding them. I did not know their limit,” Logan apologized. Whenever Logan admitted he was wrong, it was obvious he was genuinely sorry. That was a very rare occurrence, in all honesty.

Patton sat down on the couch on the other side of the weasels. He turned to face Logan. “Oh, it’s okay. I probably should’ve mentioned how much to give them anyway, so it’s not your fault.” He drank some of the kool aid. Cherry is a great flavor. “But, yeah. I’ve done the same thing before on accident, so I already know what’s gonna happen. Nothing I can’t handle,” Patton assured with a reassuring smile.

Logan nodded, “Alright…” He still felt a bit guilty.

After a few seconds of silence, Logan took Timrek out from under the pillow and handed it to Patton, “I had to hide it so that the weasels would not tear it apart.”

When Fred and George saw the terrifying thing come out of its hiding spot, and the fear in their little eyes were evident. Still, it seemed they were already feeling sick, because neither of them could even bother to move themselves to attack it.

“Oh, thanks!” Patton placed his cup down so he could take the plushie. He placed it down next to him before reaching for his snack again.

“Of course,” Logan said, still a little quietly. Not so much out of guilt anymore, but more so because he was somewhat deep in thought. He was still a little concerned about what happened earlier, during lunch. Bringing it up seemed like a terrible idea, though.

Patton was now in a better mood. That could mean he would be more willing to share what was troubling him, but it could also mean that bringing it up could make him upset again. Logan continued to eat the sandwich that Patton prepared for him while he thought about this. Usually he never ate something so greasy, but it was delicious and Patton made it, so it was worth it.

After being here for a while, the sun was getting lower in the sky. The time had really flown by. The orange light shining through the window was bouncing off of Patton’s freckled face and reflecting off of his glasses, and for some inexplicable reason, Logan had to force himself to look back at his laptop.

Why had he felt the need to keep looking?

He only barely shook his head, and from an outside perspective it was probably not noticeable in the slightest, but the action had helped Logan ignore his thoughts for now. He didn’t need to think about it.

“So,” He started, “Do you think we are completely done with the presentation? Is there anything left you would like to add?” Asking that was a good distraction from his strange thoughts.

Patton took a short moment to think about it. “Hm… no, I’m pretty sure we’re about done!” He beamed, “All we really need to do is figure out which part to give Gabe. I would say to have him present the title or sources but I’m not sure if that would be fair…” Gabe literally did nothing to help, though, so it probably is fair to give him something like that.

“Unless you already had an idea for how we could present--” His words were interrupted by a knock at the door.

Patton wasn’t expecting anyone else to come over, unless it was Gabe showing up late as usual. It’s unlikely though.

“I’ll be right back,” Patton said as he stood.

As Patton headed over to open the door, Logan leaned over slightly, curiously looking at the door to see who was there.

He couldn’t see past Patton when the door was opened. But Patton immediately gave it away. He had a look of pure shock and terror on his face, and he had sucked in a breath, froze like a deer in headlights…

It was obvious who was here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next chapter  
> :)


	19. Chapter 19

Immediately as Logan realized who was there, he leaned back against the couch out of fear that Roman would be able to see him and be infinitely more pissed than he was this morning. 

“Okay, before you slam the door in my face-- which you deserve to do!-- just hear me out, please…? I just came by to say I’m sorry.” He was apologizing… and it was actually genuine.

“Oh…” Patton was clearly still very, very panicked, “It's fine. Uh, you can leave now!” Patton needed to get Roman out of here as fast as he could. He knew exactly how Roman would react if he found Logan here.

Roman stared at him for a moment, “Alright, I get it. You probably need space.” However, he noticed that Patton was avoiding eye contact, “Pat? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, yeah,” He quickly nodded, “I just wasn’t expecting you to come by and apologize, really…” He began messing with his sleeves.

“Oh! Well, I figured if I just said it through text it wouldn’t really mean much, so I just decided to come by, y’know?” The conversation was clearly very awkward.

As they were talking, Fred decided to move over to Logan’s lap. That was a nice distraction from the terrible, stressful event that was unfolding at this very second. However, as Logan reached to pet Fred--

He started violently hacking and then… he threw up.

_ Right on Logan’s pants. _

Fucking wonderful. But if he spoke up about it, Roman would know he’s here. Even fucking better. This was just a wonderful situation to be in.

He quietly lifted Fred and moved him back to the towel with a look of pure disgust on his face. Logan looked around and saw an open door which he hoped was out of sight from the front door. It was on a wall to the left, while the front door was on the wall behind him, slightly to the right of the couch. A quick glance inside showed that the room with the open door was a bathroom.

Logan stood quietly and made his way to the bathroom to hopefully clean up this mess.

“Well, you know, I  _ really _ should be getting back to Fred and George now, they’re very sick,” Patton tried to excuse himself. He wasn’t aware of what had just happened with Fred and Logan, so when he looked back and saw Logan gone, he was a little confused. Maybe he was hiding?

Roman sighed, thinking Patton was only trying to get away from him because he was still upset, “Yeah, sure they are…” He wasn’t buying that.

“Wha-- they are though!” Patton knew Roman thought he was lying. “They’re too sick to even give me any hugs or cuddles!”

“Prove it then! Prove that you’re just not still mad at me, and then I’ll go.” Roman was standing his ground. He needed to know Patton forgave him.

Patton crossed his arms and turned back around to retrieve the babies. Roman stepped inside, closing the door behind him. He moved away from the door, standing in the middle of the room, and waited in silence as Patton walked over to the couch.

Immediately, Patton noticed the mess on Fred’s face and winced a little once realizing what probably happened. Oh that is very bad. He pet both of their heads, mumbling quietly, “Poor babies…”

Logan found some tissues on the sink counter and wiped at the weasel vomit on his jeans. Thankfully, the jeans were black, so at least it was hard to tell. Still, there was now a wet spot near his knee. Ew.

Cringing at the disgusting feeling, he tried to ignore it. It was gross, but he could live. As he finished wiping at the spot, he heard the door close. He breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that Roman had probably left.

He reached for the door handle, but as he turned the knob slightly he realized that he heard two sets of footsteps against the hardwood floor. Shit.  _ Roman was inside _ .

Logan had a slight moment of panic. Maybe if he just stayed here he would be fine? He’s already made his presence quite obvious with the sigh and the turning of the handle. He just had to hope that Roman was as inattentive as he usually was.

Unluckily for Logan, Roman  _ had _ noticed the sound of a door. Luckily, he thought it was the front door. He looked behind him to see if he closed the door properly when he came in.

Patton was wiping the mess off of Fred’s mouth with the towel before lifting him up. Fred wasn’t trying to bite or scratch Patton, so that’s surely a strong indicator that he was feeling very, very sick. He brought Fred over to Roman as proof and a distraction, “See? Baby’s sick.”

Looking down at Fred, it was quite obvious that was very lethargic. He was barely even moving, only blinking while looking down at the floor. It wasn’t even staring at Roman like the creepy rodents usually did. “Aw,” Roman attempted to comfort the thing by giving it a small pat on the head. He actually did feel a little bad for it.

Logan was listening outside the door for Roman’s voice. From what he could hear, it sounded like Patton was trying to prove that Fred was sick, for whatever reason. Must be easy to do so, considering he had clearly just thrown up.

Outside of the bathroom, George was staring up at the display in front of him. Not feeling as sick as Fred, he jumped off of the towel in search of more food. George quickly made his way over to the bathroom door, and behind it he knew his savior, the bringer of food, was there.

He began scratching at the door. He wanted more.

Logan nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard the scratching.

Roman had noticed George making his way over to the bathroom door. He turned back to Patton (who was still preoccupied with Fred), and questioned, “So… both of them are sick, right?” He raised an eyebrow as he asked.

Patton nodded to his question, not noticing that George walked right past him. “Yeah. Why do you ask?” 

“Well, it’s just if they’re both sick, then George wouldn’t be moving around freely, right?” Roman pointed over to George, who was now frantically scratching at the door, standing on his hind legs as he did so.

Patton immediately panicked, moving over to pick him up, “Oh, he’s just… delusional.”

Yeah right. 

Roman was squinting at him now, narrowing his eyes as he looked between Patton and George… and the door. Roman walked over to Patton, who was still standing near the door, and asked, “Is that so?”

Logan heard Roman’s voice become louder as he approached the door. Things were going very bad, very quickly. He held his breath and stayed still. As if that would help.

This made everything so much worse. If Logan had just been out on the couch with his laptop, Roman would obviously be mad, but maybe a bit understanding since google slides was open and they were clearly just working on a project. But here, in the bathroom, the situation looked extremely suspicious. In this situation, it seemed like Logan was hiding. Like he had made the conscious decision to hide. 

Roman’s reaction to this would be infinitely worse. 

Patton quickly nodded to Roman’s question, “Yeah-- he’s just… sick.” He placed George on top of his head while holding Fred in his arms. He knew one of them would probably throw up again, so as much as he didn’t want to move away from the door, he had to. He moved over to place them both on the towel again.

As Patton moved away, Roman didn’t move an inch. He watched Patton return the weasels to their spot on the couch, but after that, he turned back to the door. He knew Patton was obviously hiding something, and he wasn’t going to wait to find out.

So he opened the door.

The second that the two made eye contact, Logan could see the shock turning to fury within milliseconds. Almost immediately after opening the door, Roman whipped back around.

“I fucking knew it!” Roman snarled, approaching Patton. He didn’t even care that Logan was around to see his anger, he was _ furious _ .

Patton took a step back, absolutely terrified. His voice wavered as he tried to defend himself, “Okay, I know this looks bad! I-I can explain--”

“Explain what?!” And in that moment, Roman snapped, “You fucking whore! I knew something was going on!”

Logan’s mind went completely blank after hearing those three words.  _ What _ . Nearly instantaneously after his mind had gone blank, it was filled with outrage. What the hell was  _ wrong _ with Roman? Was he so self-centered to not even let Patton defend himself?

He started to walk out of the bathroom, calmly approaching Roman, planning to explain, but he was cut off. “Roma--”

Roman turned to scowl at Logan, only for a second. He didn’t need to hear jack shit from this asshole, “You shut the hell up!”

“Leave him alone, he didn’t do anything!” Patton interjected. He was scared out of his mind right now, he wasn’t even fully aware that he had blurted that out until he saw Roman turn to face him again to continue his yelling.

“Yeah,” Roman let out a hollow laugh, “Of  _ course _ you’d defend him, you skank! It’s no wonder you haven’t been listening to me lately, and then I find this shit!?” He gestured back at Logan. He was beyond furious at this point.

Without even thinking, Roman grabbed Patton by his wrist and began dragging him to the kitchen, wanting to get away from Logan. Patton tried to refuse, tried to pry his hand away. “You’re being crazy! Let me go, this hurts, Roman!”

“Ohhh, okay. I’m the one acting crazy now, huh?”

In that split second, Logan didn’t really think. He grabbed Roman’s free arm and twisted it behind his back.

Logan had never really been much stronger than Roman. Until Roman started doing sports, they were about equal, actually. They had known that Logan was actually pretty strong since they were kids, when Logan accidentally knocked out Roman’s tooth. Back when Logan enjoyed roughhousing. And of course, being Roman, he had tried to one-up Logan in terms of strength for years after.

But now, Logan thanked all of the deities he didn’t believe in that his parents had forced him through a few years of self-defense classes.

“He said to let him go, Roman,” Logan’s voice was low, threatening. Of course he didn’t want to hurt Roman, he would try to avoid it if he could. But for right now he just needed to help Patton.

Roman had to let go of Patton, but that was only because he was about to get ready to uppercut Logan and send him on his ass. He used his free arm, but when he pulled back, he ended up accidentally elbowing Patton in the face.

So now Patton was the one who had ended up on the floor.

Roman looked down at Patton, clearly shocked since that was not his intention, “Fuck! Patton, oh my god-- I’m so sorry!”

It took a moment for Patton to sit up, processing what in the world just happened. That’s when he felt something dripping from his nose. He lifted his hand, and wiped it away-- oh that was blood. His nose is bleeding. “Oh gosh…” Patton mumbled, adjusting his glasses before holding his hand up to his nose, trying to stop the blood flow in any way possible.

Again, Logan’s mind went blank. He didn’t think. In the back of his mind, all he processed was the bright red streak running from Patton’s nose down his face. At least he wiped it away.

Logan blinked, and within a split second, his fist hit the side of Roman’s face.

Roman stumbled a bit, obviously taken off guard but Logan hadn’t used enough force for him to fall back. That punch only made him even more furious than before. Without a moment to think, Roman tried to grab ahold of the other.

As soon as Roman retaliated, Patton quickly got himself up. His nose was still bleeding but he didn’t think that mattered at all right now. If he didn’t do something then chances are his nose won't be the only thing that’s bleeding.

He tried to pull Roman away, but was clearly unable to do much due to the fact that Roman was much stronger than him. “Stop it!” Patton yelled. Of course, he was being completely ignored by Roman.

And as soon as he heard Patton’s voice, Logan realized what the hell he’d just done.  _ He just punched Roman in the face. _

Thankfully, Patton grabbing Roman had distracted him for a split second, which was enough time for Logan to back up, preparing to be defensive rather than hit Roman again. That wouldn’t help anything. He kept his eyes on Roman, afraid of his response, but still glanced back at Patton as he mumbled, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry…” He wasn’t sure if he was apologizing to Patton or Roman.

Roman was trying to get Patton to let go of him, so that he’d be able to attack Logan with all of the anger he had right now. “Get off of me! This jackass is dead!”  _ That _ obviously wasn’t going to make Patton let him go.

Patton had no idea how to stop him. He couldn’t hold on for long and he knew this. He thought he might just start crying, this was all too much-- He was panicking. He glanced around, trying to find something,  _ anything _ to stop Roman. He was going to hurt Logan. They were going to hurt each other!

The moment Patton felt himself losing his grip on Roman’s sleeve, he did the last thing he could think of. 

“It’s over you psycho!”

The room seemed to go completely silent.

Logan saw the change in Roman’s expression as he processed what he had just heard. Slowly, Roman turned around, and his voice was barely even audible as he spoke, “…What?” He searched Patton’s eyes, and although he saw fear, he didn’t see any backing down, “You-- You’re fucking kidding. Tell me you’re just kidding.”

In the silence, Logan realized that he was breathing rather heavily. He was panicking. This was new.

He couldn’t believe what he had just heard. Did Patton really…?

Although he relaxed slightly, Logan still held a somewhat defensive position. He wasn’t forgetting the fact that Roman had just threatened to beat him up. Still, he continued to look between Roman’s confused, pleading face and Patton’s scared expression. 

And Patton didn’t back down. He stayed dead silent, and although he had the sleeve of his cat hoodie held across his face, blocking the blood, and his eyes were watering with the beginnings of tears, he looked… powerful. He glared at Roman, his eyes filled with determination. And he was not going to take back what he had just said.

Roman then realized that he was serious.

And slowly, he turned back to Logan.

As soon as they realized what he was about to do, both Patton and Logan’s eyes widened, Logan immediately backing up further and Patton lunging forward to grab onto Roman again.

Roman had literally tried to  _ tackle _ Logan. “This is your fault! I’ll fucking crush you and make it look like a bloody accident!” He screamed. Patton was yelling at him to stop, but Roman barely even heard it. And soon, Patton’s grip slipped and Roman fell forward. He quickly corrected his balance so that he could kill Logan in any way possible.

While Logan was still safely across the room from Roman, he might as well try… “Roman! We were working on a project together! Check the computer!” He knew it wouldn’t work.

And before Roman responded, in a split second, Logan looked at Patton with terrified, and yet remorseful eyes. He had caused this.  _ He _ initiated the fight,  _ he _ escalated it, by punching Roman. And now Patton was scared out of his mind, and it was Logan’s fault.

Roman didn’t want to hear anything from Logan. He completely ignored whatever explanation he had, thinking it was just an excuse to hide whatever it was they were actually doing, “As if I’m going to believe your sorry ass!”

Patton had no clue what to do at this point. He was hurt, Roman was going crazy, Logan was most likely going to be sent to a hospital very soon. It was all too much. He let himself sink to the floor close to a wall, starting to panic. He felt sick to his stomach and he could feel tears starting to sting his eyes. He wanted Roman  _ out _ . There was nothing he could do to stop him.

And Roman was approaching Logan again. And in a quick motion, Logan grabbed Roman’s arm and, again, twisted it behind his back. Learning from last time, he also grabbed Roman’s other arm and held it there too. At least Roman couldn’t hit him in this position.

So Logan was safe.

That was the main problem (kind of) solved. Now they either needed to get through to Roman or get him out before he could cause any more damage.

Even though Roman was now in a position where he couldn’t hurt Logan, it didn’t stop him from trying. He was kicking, trying to get at least one arm out of Logan’s grasp, anything to at least be able to get himself free.

And Patton was still panicking. Even though Roman was unable to hurt Logan anymore, tears still rolled down Patton’s cheeks and he was trying to control his breathing. This was terrifying for him to watch, especially since it was these two.

Logan saw the panicked expression in Patton’s eyes, and his expression morphed to match. Oh no.

“I’m sorry, Patton.” He apologized. Honestly, he doesn’t know what he was apologizing for. Initiating the fight? Yes. Hurting Roman? Yes. Making this whole situation even worse? Yes. So many things.

He was struggling to keep Roman still, It was difficult. Although Logan was taller than Roman, and knew more information in terms of fighting, Roman was physically a lot stronger. Broader shoulders, more muscle. It was difficult to hold onto him when he was struggling this much.

Logan was torn between helping Patton and holding Roman. If he let go, Roman would definitely try to murder him. It would be infinitely worse if Logan ran to Patton, which is what he wanted to do, of course. Patton was panicking, it seemed he was barely even able to breathe right. Tears and blood were running down his face. And the sight  _ killed  _ Logan.

Patton avoided looking over at the two, the sight of them only making him feel worse. And then Patton realized-- the weasels were still here! Oh god that made everything even worse!

Roman was still trying to get his arm free, but whenever he tried, it felt like his arm was going to snap. And of course that was obvious, because the whole point of this hold was to keep him there, but it didn’t stop Roman from trying.

It took a lot for him to calm down. He looked over at Patton and saw how scared and helpless he looked. Obviously he was hurt, like a lot. Roman was just-- he loved him so much and this was terrifying. He didn’t want to lose him. He--

He had already lost him.

And of course that was the moment Logan decided to open his mouth.

“Roman, please just calm down. I don’t want to hurt you. I freaked out earlier and hit you, I’m so sorry, please just let Patton explain. You don’t have to trust me. Just let him explain. He’s _ terrified _ , Roman!” Logan pleaded. He was freaking out and just needed to get Roman to calm down.

Roman didn’t want to talk to either of them, “You can go fuck yourself!” Or better yet, fuck his ex-boyfriend, like he assumed Logan  _ was _ doing! He was still pissed off beyond belief, but at least his attempts at trying to put Logan in a hospital have decreased. A little.

Patton hugged his knees and looked down at the floor. Fred and George had been watching most of this happen, and they were now hiding behind one of the pillows. Now that most of the action had calmed down, George peeked his head out from the pillow and saw Patton.

Since he’s been around longer than Fred, George obviously was much more attached to Patton. And so, seeing him in distress, George jumped off of the couch and scurried over to his dad. George stayed next to Patton, letting him pet him for comfort. Still, George was cowering as he kept his eyes on Roman and Logan.

Logan watched George hop off the couch, and after seeing him safely make his way over and comfort Patton, Logan returned his attention to Roman. He was still struggling. He had just told Logan to go fuck himself, and honestly, Logan was fucking pissed.

He groaned, “My god, Roman!” He’s finally snapped.

“Why is your head so far up your ass that you believe you are right about  _ every little thing _ !?” Logan yelled, “I know what you’re assuming, based on the horrible words you called the boy you supposedly love. Patton and I have various ways to prove to you that no such thing is happening, and yet you refuse to even hear us out. Patton’s terrified out of his mind and the damn  _ weasel _ is offering better emotional support than you!”

“Because I fucking know I’m right!” Roman argued, “There’s nothing to prove other than you’re a massive boyfriend-stealing prick--” He looked over at Patton, “And he’s a lying, cheating slut!”

Those harsh words clearly weren’t helping at all. Patton flinched, and then picked up George and held him close, “Shut up already!” He tried to be loud, tried to be assertive, but it sounded more like a whimper. He sounded like he was on the edge of sobbing as he said, “Just get out.” He didn’t know how much more of this he could handle.

Logan knew there was no getting through to Roman.

“Patton, open the front door please.”

Logan had to struggle even more as he made his way to the front door, because, immediately after he had asked Patton to open the door, Roman started kicking and struggling even more. 

“Oh fuck no! No no no! You let me go right now you piece of scum!”

As Logan was trying to get over there, Patton stood up, a bit shaky at first. He stumbled when making his way to the door, which was admittedly a short distance. He placed George down before he opened the door wide enough for Logan to get Roman out. After doing so, he backed away from the door, and hid against the wall again, sinking to the floor.

And Logan did exactly what Roman asked, he let go. As soon as he did, he pushed him out of the door. His eyes were filled with panic as Roman hurried to get back inside, but Logan shut the door. 

As soon as the door was closed and the knocking had stopped, Logan turned around and kneeled down in front of Patton and hugged him, “I’m sorry, it’s okay. He’s gone. I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry,” It was almost incoherent mumbling.

Patton almost immediately wrapped his arms around Logan, adjusting himself so that he could hide his face in his chest as he began to cry. Everything was just so awful. Everything had gone wrong-- But one thing didn’t make sense. Why was Logan apologizing? He didn’t really do anything… well, besides punch Roman in the face but he had it coming.

He was just so glad that Roman was gone. Things would have gotten very ugly if he had been here even a second longer. He continued to hold onto Logan as his cries eventually devolved into sobs.

Logan just held on. He didn’t care that his shirt was now getting wet with tears. He didn’t care that Patton was maybe holding on a tiny bit too tight. He didn’t care that Patton’s glasses were digging into his chest, or that hugging wasn’t something Logan particularly did.

Nothing mattered other than comforting the sobbing, emotionally destroyed boy in his arms.

Logan would stay here for as long as Patton needed him.


	20. Chapter 20

It took a very long time for Patton to calm down.

His grip on Logan had become weaker as minutes passed and his sobs devolved into sniffles and his constant trembling into short, quick tremors that caused him to hold on even tighter, if only for a second. And he had stopped crying about a minute ago, now only trying to steady his breathing as he tried to get rid of the fear that had overtaken his mind only minutes ago.

He didn’t want to let go of Logan.

As that thought crossed his mind, another sob wracked his body and he sunk lower into the protective hug. He just needed comfort.

And after another minute or so, Patton removed himself from Logan’s grasp, knowing that he had to let go eventually. Logan didn’t like too much physical contact, did he? Patton kept his eyes facing the ground as he stood up. His throat ached from the intense crying and he felt like if he spoke, not only would he barely be able to speak a single word, but Patton knows he would immediately start crying again.

As he pulled back, he took his glasses off to wipe the tear marks off of them. He wiped them off on his sleeve, trying to ignore the bright red splotch of his own blood on the sleeve that had been from mere minutes ago. Thankfully the bleeding had stopped.

Logan was scanning Patton, watching his face and his movements and trying to tell whether or not he was feeling any better, any less heartbroken and destroyed. When Patton had stepped back, Logan had also stood up before placing his right hand on Patton’s upper arm, trying to keep some form of contact since he knew it would help. At least a little bit.

Once Patton was done cleaning his glasses, Logan desperately just wanted to  _ see _ him. But Patton kept his eyes facing the ground. So, trying his hardest to convey his worry and his sympathy through his voice alone, Logan asked, “Are you… okay?”

He knew the answer was going to be no.

Patton began to fiddle with his sleeves, still looking at the ground as he nodded. He wasn’t one for lying, but right now, that is just what he wanted to believe. He  _ should _ be okay, as a matter of fact he should be feeling great. He didn’t have to deal with his terrible relationship anymore.

But he wasn’t. He didn’t feel relieved or happy, just just felt… guilty? Patton knows what Roman thought was happening. He knows what he assumed. Patton knew Roman probably felt even worse right now.

He didn’t even let them explain.

Logan, of course, still wasn’t the best at reading other people’s emotions. But he knew for a fact that no one would be okay after something like this. He had just felt Patton’s body shake with heart wrenching sobs and had seen him cower in fear. That just… Logan couldn’t just move past that.

“It-- it’s okay to not be okay, Patton,” He started, “You don’t need to feel okay right now. You probably aren’t going to feel okay for a while.”

After barely even a second of contemplation, Logan decided to move his right hand up to Patton’s face to wipe away some of the tears that were still on his face. Thankfully, that got Patton to look up at him.

“I’m here for you,” He mumbled quietly, continuing to look into Patton’s eyes. He’s trying, Logan is  _ trying _ to just show Patton how much he meant to him. This was more important than he could ever know.

Patton stared at Logan for a moment, those final words making him think… After all of this, Logan was still here. After being accused by Roman, literally being threatened, having to console Patton  _ again _ … he was still here. He had chosen to stay here and help Patton.

It was more than Patton could ever ask to have someone like him around, especially at a time like this. He didn’t know what he would do if Logan wasn’t here to help.

That thought made him smile, only softly though. He finally let himself take a deep, shaky breath to calm himself down. Afterwards he closed his eyes, and quietly said, “Thanks Logan…” He wanted to hug him again, just to show his gratitude, but he assumed Logan was probably tired of it by now.

Logan nodded, “Of course. Always.”

And then he noticed Patton’s hesitation. A small step back, and sad look in his eyes despite the gratefulness and relief there. Patton was usually one for physical contact, so Logan pulled the smaller man closer again and enveloped him in his arms.

Maybe using Patton’s usual need for physical contact as an excuse was a bit of a lie. Logan just… he wanted to hug him again.

Patton was clearly not expecting this reaction. It took him a few seconds to even realize what was happening. When he did, he didn’t even bother to question it. Instead, he went along with it.

He couldn’t stop himself from smiling ever so slightly as he proceeded to wrap his arms around Logan once again.

Logan had a relieved smile on his face when Patton reciprocated the hug. Patton had clearly needed it.

This whole week had been so emotionally exhausting. It was more than Logan thought he could ever handle. Being there for someone had never been this emotionally taxing before, and yet, Logan had come to learn that for Patton, he was willing to do anything.

It was strange just how much Patton seemed to invade his life in the year that he’s known him. In fact it’s only been a few days since he’s really cared to  _ know _ Patton. 

At this point, Patton was calm enough to have stopped his shaking completely. His nose and cheeks were still red from crying, though. It probably wouldn’t take too long for it to go away, so he wasn’t too worried about it.

After another minute or so in the hug, Patton let Logan go again. He didn’t want to make him uncomfortable or anything. Patton had no idea what else to say besides thank you. He wanted to thank him for a lot of things, since Logan has done so much for him. He didn’t even know if there was any way he could repay him.

When Patton had let him go, Logan decided that it was probably for the best. Patton seemed much more calm now. So he began walking to the couch. However, he only took a single step before glancing back at Patton. For some reason, his gaze dropped to Patton’s hand. Why had he had the sudden, inexplicable urge to hold it? 

Last time he had done that he had also been holding Patton as he cried for minutes on end, back at Roman’s party. Was Logan just doing it because he thought Patton needed comfort?

That didn’t explain why Logan  _ wanted _ to do it.

He ignored that thought for now. He looked back up to Patton’s eyes before walking to the couch instead, sitting down. He shut the laptop in front of him before patting the seat next to him while giving Patton a kind, slightly awkward smile.

Patton was about to make his way over, but he stopped himself. Why? Because apparently, the two long rat children thought Logan meant for them to sit next to him. So of course, those two made it there first. They both looked up at Logan, hoping he would give them more food.

At first, Patton tried to hold on a giggle, but was unable to and it soon turned into just flat out laughter.

Logan had been smiling down at the weasels, obviously acknowledging just how cute they were, but then--

His attention was drawn away from them when Patton began laughing. Logan just had to watch in admiration for a few seconds, utterly awestruck by just how happy he sounded. A flood of tears at first, but now, bright laughter that was reminiscent of how happy Patton used to be.

Honestly, the sound alone was enough to make Logan burst out in a massive grin. Patton’s smiling face, still somewhat red from the tears that had spilled only minutes ago… Patton practically radiated sunshine.

Logan wasn’t sure why his breath caught in his throat.

Patton eventually calmed down his laughter, a smile still on his face. The two weasel children clearly didn’t get the hint that they weren’t getting any kind of snacks any time soon. They were still mindlessly watching Logan, not even caring that they had taken the seat that was supposed to go to their other dad. So Patton decided to step in.

He made his way over to the couch, lifted the two up for a second so he could sit down next to Logan, and then placed them both down on his lap. 

But then Fred climbed off of Patton and immediately went over to Logan, because even though he was sick, he still wanted more food. George seemed to be fine sitting on Patton’s lap, but he still looked up at Logan expectantly. It was clear that they had a favorite.

Logan was glad that Patton had a small distraction, a short time in which he felt okay enough to laugh again. Although it was obvious that the decision of leaving Roman would weigh on him for a long time, as long as Patton was happy even for short periods of time, Logan would be content.

He pet Fred, not really saying anything as he looked at the view in front of him.

Patton, looking down at George with a small smile adorned across his freckled face. The bright oranges of the sunset had long passed while Roman had been here, and now, the room was colored by the warm yellow light of a nearby lamp as well as the bright street lamps outside of the large window behind the couch, and the light was reflecting off of the edges of Patton’s hair. 

Logan felt like he didn’t really need to say anything in this moment. It was a peaceful silence.

He leaned back against the couch, forcing his gaze away from Patton and back to Fred.

Patton had allowed George to fall asleep in his lap. He didn’t mind at all because this was just something that the two ended up doing after every single stressful time in Patton’s life. Today was more than that, and he dreaded to find out how tomorrow would go. Patton wondered if Roman would leave him alone now, of if he just made things even worse.

He shook the thought out of his head, not wanting to worry again. He will just have to wait and see.

While George was sleeping, Patton used two fingers to lightly stroke the creature’s back. That’s actually how you’re supposed to pet small animals like this. A full hand might give you too much force since they’re so tiny. Patton has had George long enough to know that.

And Patton also didn’t say a single word as he looked down at George with a fond expression. He knew he didn’t have to speak. He liked it like this.

But then the silence was suddenly broken when Logan heard the sound of a notification from his phone. He took it out of his pocket and looked down at it. His eyes widened as he read through the long rant of a text sent by Virgil.

“Patton…” Logan said, “I think we have a problem.”

Patton turned his gaze over to Logan, a slightly worried and confused look in his eyes, “What’s wrong…?” He asked. He didn’t want to know. He was just starting to calm down and--

“Virgil just texted me…” Logan’s voice had a sense of mild panic to it, like he was afraid to tell Patton what he had just learned, “…Apparently everyone’s talking to each other. Spreading rumors… about us.” Logan knew he had to hold it together to Patton’s sake.

“I--” Logan decided to elaborate, “I guess people heard Roman’s side of the story before we could tell ours and now everyone thinks…” Logan’s voice tapered off at the end. He couldn’t bring himself to say what Roman had wrongly assumed.

Patton took a moment to process what was even going on right now. That’s when it hit him. If Logan had found out because of Virgil-- oh god. His own phone had been upstairs, “E-excuse me,” He mumbled, removing George from his lap before quickly making his way down the hallway and up the stairs.

_ No no no no no no no please-- _

It was a terrible idea for him to even check how many messages he must be getting right now, but no one would be able to keep themselves away. He went to his room and picked up his phone from where it was on a small table desk. He turned it on and saw that his whole lock screen was flooded with notifications.

_ Oh he felt sick. _

Logan stared down at his phone. There wasn’t much else he could do.

He contemplated following Patton upstairs. Patton seemed to enjoy having Logan around to support him when things went wrong, but also--

Logan was one of the root problems here.  _ He _ was the one that people assumed Patton was cheating on Roman with.

The notifications that swarmed Patton’s phone kept coming in. Some of them were people asking if the rumors were true, others calling him some very bad names, and of course there were the few that actually believed Patton was innocent in this situation.

There were a few missed calls, most of which were from his close friends like Emile and even one from Virgil. Patton shut off his phone, although knowing full well he would have to face all of those messages again when he turned it back on.

His immediate thought was that Roman was the one behind this. He never thought he would get as mad as to lie about this whole problem, but right now he wasn’t sure what to believe.

Patton sank into the side of his bed, phone in hand. He knew he shouldn’t let what those people were saying get to him, but they struck hard. Slut, cheater, liar… all posted in the comments of a majority of his recent posts and nearly all of his social media accounts. Even if he did have people who believed he was innocent, they were drowned out by all of the other voices. Patton couldn’t handle it.

He started to quietly sob to himself, looking at the black screen of his phone.

Logan thought it through. He decided he should follow Patton. Maybe it was a shitty idea, but Patton most likely needed comfort right now.

He walked in the direction he saw Patton go, up the stairs, and as he walked through the hallway he saw Patton in a room with an open door. He stepped in slightly. “Is it bad?” Logan asked sympathetically. He was worried about how Patton was feeling right now. This must be terrible.

Patton didn’t say anything when Logan first entered the room. As a matter of fact, he didn’t even bother to look up at him. Although what those people were calling him wasn’t true, Patton still felt like this was somehow his own fault. 

He hugged his knees and nodded slightly. He wasn’t sure if he should even show Logan what people are saying, knowing full well there probably wasn’t anything either of them could even do. Wiping away his tears was pointless. They just kept coming.

Logan watched as Patton fell apart for the second time today. His heart broke at the sight, “No, no, Patton…” He mumbled in a slight panic as he stepped into the room. He sat down next to Patton, grabbing one of his hands.

“It’s okay, just-- Remember that Roman refused to listen to our side of the story. What they’re saying isn’t true. We know this. Nothing they say should affect you, and I know it  _ does  _ affect you, but  _ please _ , listen to me when I say that nothing they say is true in the slightest.”

Of course, Logan had no clue what was being said. But he had ideas. When things like this happened, there were certain words that were used to describe the ‘accused.’

Slut, whore, cheater… 

And Logan knew he would be called horrible things as well. Though he could handle it. Logan knew how to bottle his emotions and hide his initial reactions. Patton didn’t. Last time he tried to hide how he was feeling, it nearly broke him. If anyone insulted Patton in person, the fallout would be terrible.

Patton held onto Logan’s hand, keeping his gaze toward the ground as he listened to him speak.

He knew Logan was right, that he shouldn’t let any of this get to him, that it was Roman’s fault, but it didn’t stop him from feeling horrible about the situation. Most of the people saying these things were coming from people he considered friends, people he thought would take his side.

Now that he thought about it, what did Virgil think? He knew Virgil was aware of what was going on, but would he believe what the others were saying about them, too?

And Patton continued to cry. He had already cried so much today. So much… this crying just felt fake. It was emptier, weaker. He just felt so drained. It hurt. 

Everything felt like it was getting better for only a few minutes before it was stolen from Patton in an instant. Again.

Logan sat for a while, holding Patton’s hand as the younger man cried. After about a minute, Logan shifted to give Patton his third hug of the day. Probably the most Logan has ever hugged someone in one day, but he’d be damned if he said he didn’t enjoy it. This was obviously horrible, this situation, but Logan enjoyed being here for Patton. To comfort him in any way possible… it was bittersweet, really.

It felt like it was his obligation to support Patton, but it was an obligation set by Logan himself.

Patton needed someone to care for him, and it just so happened Logan was there that one Friday night in Roman’s bathroom where Patton admitted everything, and since then it solidified in Logan’s mind that he had to help in some way.

And look where that got him. Being accused of wrecking a relationship by sleeping with one of them.

Nevertheless, he comforted Patton. It was the least he could do. It was what he  _ wanted _ to do.

Patton allowed himself to rest in Logan’s embrace, continuing to cry. Whenever he felt like he was close to calming down, thoughts of those messages and Roman’s face and the fight and the months of suffering with Roman obliviously wrapping his arm around Patton’s waist just came flooding back. A mixture of these things, all coming down in a wave to crash over him and overwhelm him with crushing sadness yet again. He didn’t know how to stop it. Those cruel names and those cruel people only served to remind him that things are only going to get  _ worse _ .

He looked at the black screen on his phone. He wanted to know what more people were saying, see how big this has gotten by now, but he knew that would be a terrible idea.

Logan saw the glance at the phone, saw the desperate sadness in Patton’s expression, and a wave of indignation swept through him. No way in hell was he letting those people get to Patton.

“Can I see your phone?” Logan asked, pulling back from the hug to hold his hand out to Patton.

Patton stared at him through the tears in his eyes, and after a glance at his phone and back up at Logan, he handed it over after unlocking it.

There were so many notifications. So many terrible ones. Logan took in a shaky breath as he read through them. But then he got to some nicer ones.

“Whoever is spreading all of this stuff about you is a horrible person, Patton. I don’t know how this started but I’m sorry,” Logan read aloud.

“Oh my lord, Patton, are you okay? What happened? People are saying you broke up with Roman? That you cheated on him with his best friend?? You’re so nice. I don’t know where this came from, how is this possible? There’s no way it’s true. I’m with you on this one,” He read another.

There were a few nice ones, and Logan read those out loud for Patton, sifting through the harsh words and false accusations. As he did so, he held onto Patton with one arm, holding him as he read from the phone with his other hand.

When he was done, he looked back to Patton, “People love you, Patton. Some understand that not everything they hear is true. Rumors are terrible in that way. Those that understand the horrible situations that can arise from gossip are clearly with you here. Virgil and I included.”

While Logan read, Patton was able to stop himself from crying. There was the occasional sniffle and wiping away of some tears, but that was it. He continued to stay in Logan’s grasp, actually enjoying the comfort he was providing. 

And when he finished and began talking on his own, Patton turned his gaze up to look at Logan. Of course Logan was right, again. There was always going to be at least one person to stay by his side. Even if there weren’t many, a couple was better than none.

He took a shaky breath, then smiled softly at the other through his watery eyes. He was so glad to have someone like Logan around. Without him, chances are he’d let his own irrational thoughts take control.

Now that Patton had calmed down, Logan wrapped both arms around him yet again. He stayed there for a few seconds before letting go, still looking into Patton’s eyes.

“I just want to say, Patton… I’m sorry. If things had gone differently, Roman wouldn’t have found me ‘hiding’ in the bathroom, adding to his suspicions. If I hadn’t initiated that fight, he wouldn’t have lashed out by blaming you further…”

He paused for a moment, taking in a deep breath to prepare himself for yet another emotional confession. “I want to help you so badly. I want to take some of the burden away so that you aren’t weighed down by it as much as you were before that party. But sometimes…” He looked down, breaking eye contact, “Sometimes I feel like I’m making things even worse.”

Patton had no clue why Logan would feel the need to apologize. Sure, things probably would’ve gone better if Logan hadn’t looked so suspicious and they’d been able to explain themselves, but if it wasn’t for Logan then chances are he would still be in that terrible relationship.

After a long amount of time not speaking, only crying, Patton’s voice was quiet and ever so slightly scratchy as he spoke, “You don’t need to be sorry, I don’t blame you…” He began fiddling with his sleeves as he went on.

“If anything… I couldn’t thank you enough. I know things are--” He stopped for a moment. Things were terrible. “I know things are… not as good as I would hope.” Gee, that sure is a nice way to put it. “But things would probably be a lot worse if you weren’t here to help.”

Logan let a small smile cross his face at Patton’s words. That eased some of his guilt. Key word: some.

“Thank you, Patton,” He said simply. There wasn’t much else that needed to be said. Logan had already admitted his feelings a little too much, and honestly it had been exhausting. He felt like there wasn’t anything he really needed to say to Patton besides thank you. 

They were both helping each other in more ways than either of them could ever understand.

Patton smiled at Logan, just to at least let him know things were slightly okay. Not really, but-- at least he wasn’t crying anymore. “Yeah, of course.”

But then he realized that it was starting to get late. He had lost track of time due to the current events. “Uh-- sorry for making you stay here so long. It wasn’t my intention, obviously,” Patton mumbled, knowing Logan would probably want to be leaving about now.

Logan glanced down at the watch on his wrist. Admittedly, it was late. Later than Logan usually stayed awake.

He wanted to stay, in all honesty, but he knew that people were watching them now. If anyone got word that Logan stayed at Patton’s house past midnight, or god forbid slept over… all hell would break loose.

“Yes… I think I should go. But I want you to know that I do not  _ want _ to go.” He said honestly, again looking into Patton’s eyes. He sighed, standing up and walking to the door to the room. He glanced back at Patton, waiting for him to follow him to the front door to say goodbye.

And he did. Patton stood up and followed after Logan, maintaining that small smile he had. Just the fact that Logan would rather stay here than leave made him a bit happier.

Then there was the small realization that Logan probably said that because he still felt bad for the whole situation. At least that’s what Patton thought. Nevertheless, he brushed away the thought.

They reached the front door. Logan waited for Patton to unlock it. While Patton was doing so, Logan took the time to contemplate what he was going to say. And once Patton stepped away from the door, Logan wrapped his arms around Patton yet again.

And immediately, Patton let his head rest on Logan’s chest. He felt safe like this, as though Logan would be able to protect him from everyone and everything those mean people were saying. As Logan began talking, Patton listened, not even trying to break loose from Logan’s grasp.

“Before I go,” Logan started while holding Patton, “I want to know how you would like me to act tomorrow. If we talk at all, people will add to their suspicions. I want to talk to you, Patton. I want to help in any way I can. But if you would prefer to maintain your reputation as much as possible and avoid me, I understand. I-- I won’t let it bother me.”

By the small crack in his voice near the end of his sentence, it was clear that it  _ would _ bother him. He wanted to be closer to Patton, to be there for him. But if he had to sacrifice his desires in order to help Patton keep the rest of his friends from turning on him, so be it.

When Logan was finished, Patton stayed quiet for a moment. He himself wasn’t sure what to do. He didn’t really care all too much about reputation, but he knew he probably couldn’t handle what all of these people were saying. He wanted to stay by Logan’s side, but feared it would only make things worse.

He had a choice to make, a very difficult one that he felt could probably tear him apart. “You still want to help me? Even after you were dragged into this mess…?” He asked. He felt that Logan wouldn’t even be dealing with these problems if it weren’t for him.

Logan pulled away from the hug enough to look Patton in the eyes. He kept his hands on Patton’s forearms as he looked at Patton incredulously.

“Of course I want to help you!” He sounded shocked that Patton would even believe otherwise. “I was not ‘dragged into’ this mess. Admittedly, I am as much at fault as anyone else in this situation, and I willingly chose to help you on Friday night and I am willingly choosing to help you again now, if you will let me.”

He paused, repeating himself quietly, “I  _ want _ to help you, Patton.”

Patton avoided eye contact with the other for a moment. He began thinking, why would he even dare to doubt that Logan wanted to help? Logan was someone he trusted, Logan was always there for him when he needed it most. To even assume he wouldn’t want to help is ridiculous.

He turned back to Logan, staring into his eyes as he spoke. “Thank you…” He started, his voice quiet, “I don’t think I’ve really expressed how thankful I am to have you with me right now.” He was hesitant to continue, but added just to answer his question. “If anything, I’d hate it if we weren’t around one another, but if you think it would make things worse, then I guess…” He stopped for a few seconds, contemplating his answer. “I guess I don’t care.”

He didn’t care if it would raise assumptions, or if more rumors spread. Logan was usually the one to make the right choices, better than Patton, that’s for sure.

“I guess I will be sticking around quite often then, starlight.” As soon as Logan said it, he flushed at the nickname. It was perhaps a little awkward, but Logan didn’t regret saying it.

Patton was also a bit surprised by that sudden nickname. The closest Logan has ever gotten to a nickname would be Pat, so this was very very new. Starlight. He liked it!

He smiled up at Logan, a tint of blush in his cheeks, “O-okay then!” He wasn’t even quite sure what to say. Should he mention the nickname? Should he give Logan a nickname? Because honestly he could probably think of twenty right here on the spot.

Logan pulled away from the hug, happy to have made Patton smile, It cost him a lot of embarrassment, but who cares? That smile seemed to melt away all of the world’s problems.

Still with a happy expression, Logan said a simple, “Goodnight.” His fond look simultaneously showed his happiness for having spent time with Patton (despite the unwelcome circumstances that had happened during the short evening) as well as his sadness for having to leave.

Patton wasn’t even able to get rid of the beaming expression he had, even if he wanted to. In this moment, he was happy. Probably another word for that, but he’s so happy he can’t even think of another word for it.

“Goodnight,” He responded. After this, he planned on checking up on Fred and George, who were both sleeping on the couch nearby.

Logan walked out of the front door, glancing back at Patton with a small smile before he closed the door behind him.

He let out a small sigh as he walked back to his car. He got in and drove back to his house, where he collapsed on his bed the second he walked into his room.

Once Logan had left, Patton went over to the couch and picked up the sleeping weasels. He placed George on his head and carried Fred in his arms, taking the two children upstairs so they could rest in their cage.

Patton entered his room and placed them both down so they could get some sleep. He looked down at his phone which had been left on the floor. He had an urge to look through it, to see what people were saying, but he ignored it.

He picked it up and placed it on top of his little table desk. He’ll deal with it tomorrow. Today had taken most of his energy, so almost immediately after laying down, he was asleep.

And Logan almost fell asleep immediately as well, also being exhausted. But before doing so, he needed to check his phone.

Plenty of notifications, but not nearly as much as Patton had. Logan preferred to avoid social media, so the only notifications he had were texts. Some were even from unknown numbers. People were telling each other his phone number now? Just so they could ridicule him? Wonderful.

He decided to respond to Virgil, of course. Those were the only messages that mattered. Logan still hadn’t even replied since receiving the information earlier.

_ [Thank you, Virgil. It was good to hear about these rumors before Patton could find them out on his own. It was easier to break the news lightly than it would have been to help him afterwards. Patton is doing well, overall. He will have trouble dealing with this, but I have reassured him that we are both here for him, as well as his other friends, like Emile.] _

Virgil received the text and suddenly most of his nerves fell away.

_ [okay. i’m sorry about this. it must be hell for you two right now.] _

_ [It is worse for Patton.] _

Before putting his phone on silent to block out any more texts he may receive during the night, he sent Virgil one last message.

_ [We are going to help him through this.] _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "...their newly formed bond becomes a source of comfort for Patton as his world begins to fall apart."


	21. Chapter 21

When morning arrived and his eyes opened, Patton’s gaze immediately fell on his phone, across the room on his small table desk. And he had nearly forgotten what had happened yesterday with Roman. Nearly. Suddenly, as he stared at his phone, he remembered the cruel fate that awaited him for when he entered those school doors.

In all honesty, he wanted to text his mom to tell her he was sick, but he would never lie to her.

He climbed out of bed, getting himself ready for the day. Things didn’t feel right, and Patton didn’t quite feel like himself. He didn’t want to try today. He decided to just pick out a random pair of black leggings, a light blue shirt, and a fuzzy grey sweater with a small embroidered bear on the front, near his heart. 

After only barely fixing his hair, he gave a wave goodbye to the weasel children as he walked out of his room to head downstairs.

He had his phone in his backpack, in a back pocket that he couldn’t reach. He didn’t even want to touch it. It hadn’t been turned on yet, but it was decently charged, from what Patton could remember. 

Patton didn’t even bother to grab breakfast before heading out the door. He walked down the sidewalk, since Roman would no longer be there to give him a ride. 

Walking wasn’t so bad.

During his walk, Patton tried to come up with any possible reason as to why today wouldn’t be as bad as he thought it could be. He was desperate. Well, number one… there is no number one. Okay, he just needs to think. What’s something that can make this day better?

Logan can-- no. Patton shook that thought off very quickly. Even if it was the truth.

The walk felt longer than any walk to school he’s ever had to do. Maybe he just thought time was slowing down. When he eventually arrived at the school, he had to stop himself before entering. There were so many kids who had already been told the false version of this situation. 

Patton was scared.

\------

When Logan awoke, he had a similar situation as Patton. The memories last night immediately came to him, and he knew what awaited him and Patton when they arrived at school.

However, he knew going to school was important, and he shouldn’t be haltered by this… inconvenience. It’s been instilled in him long enough that unless you’re basically dying, school came above all else.

He was going, no matter what. Does that mean the words that will be thrown at him won’t affect him? Absolutely not. Of course they’re going to affect him.

Still, he got ready, putting on a grey polo shirt, black tie, and black jeans. He ate, made himself lunch, and walked out of the door. All in complete silence. Maybe he was being over-dramatic, but it felt like he was walking to his death sentence. And yet, it was still going to be a million times worse for Patton.

Logan climbed into his car and prepared to pick up Virgil. Logan already knew his own plans; he would drop Virgil off at a separate door. He didn’t want Virgil to be affected by the rumors and insults that would inevitably come Logan’s way.

A few minutes later, he was pulling up in front of Virgil’s house, and, for once, he didn’t need to send Virgil a text that he was here. Virgil was already waiting outside.

The car ride was awkwardly silent as Logan began to drive again. There was obviously one question hanging in the air. Logan was waiting for it to be asked. Virgil was unsure if he should even ask, but eventually his curiosity and worrying got the better of him.

“What happened yesterday?” He asked quietly, like he was afraid to ask.

Logan let out a small sigh, and glanced at Virgil before resuming focus on the road. And then he told Virgil everything, in detail. From the project to the fight to comforting Patton after they had gotten news of the rumors.

Virgil had to sit in silence for a moment, processing the information. They had been parked for a while, already making it to the school before Logan had even finished. After a few more seconds of silence…

“Holy shit,” Virgil breathed. He stared down at the glove box, his eyebrows furrowed in anger and confusion.

Logan nodded. “I suppose that is a pretty good way of summarizing the general feeling you get from a story such as that.”

“Yeah,” Virgil scoffed, “No kidding. This is a lot deeper than I thought. I’m assuming Roman probably spread the lies, huh?”

“No doubt about that,” Logan muttered with a semi-monotone voice. He sounded angry at even the mention of Roman.

Virgil placed a hand on Logan’s shoulder. “Just know I’m here for you and Pat, okay?”

“Of course you are…” Logan had already given up on the possibility of keeping Virgil out of this. Virgil could be very determined when he wanted to be, and he was clearly set on helping in any way he could.

The two got out of the care and headed into the school, separating before they reached the door. Logan went through another entrance, still wanting to keep his distance in case people started assuming Virgil was involved in the rumors in some way.

And Logan walked quietly down the hall, looking straight forward despite being completely aware of the gazes lingering on him. He’d never been the center of attention ever, especially not in this way. He could feel their hatred and judgement burning into the back of his skull as he passed them in the halls.

\------

As Patton entered the school, he could immediately tell that some people were whispering to each other, staring at him. The feeling of embarrassment and shame immediately started to flood his body. He kept his eyes focused on the ground and his heart picked up speed.

He knew he wouldn’t be able to handle looking one of these people in the eye. He did nothing wrong, and yet they all somehow made him feel like he did _everything_ wrong. That familiar feeling of nausea was making its way back into the pit of Patton’s stomach.

This place felt like one massive trap, and it felt like Patton was stuck. He didn’t want to be trapped in this place where he felt like so many people were thinking of him as some sort of whore, or slut, or whatever it is they’re calling him.

He wanted to hide and never again show himself to the rest of the world.

Logan soon made it to his locker. He put his backpack inside and took out his supplies for first period. As he did so, he heard whispers. So many whispers.

One was right next to him, a boy that was one of Roman’s friends from whatever sport they participated in. Logan heard the boy mumble one word to another person nearby, glancing at Logan as he whispered it.

“Homewrecker.”

Logan took in a deep breath and turned to the pair of boys. One of them had blonde hair, and the other was impressively short and had black hair. They looked young, and impossibly stupid.

“Oh, look! He does understand some words…” The blonde boy who had initially whispered spoke, “How about these words? ‘I’m in a relationship.’” He said snarkily, smirking.

\------

Patton suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder, and with all of the thoughts running through his head, it had startled him a bit. He turned and--

Oh thank god it was Emile. He looked extremely worried, and yet managed to give Patton a sympathetic smile. Emile glanced around for a second, taking in the people watching them. He decided to start walking alongside Patton as he asked quietly, “Hey Pat, you okay?”

Emile was obviously one of the people that were going to stick by Patton’s side during this, he was one of his best friends, so how could he not?

Patton remained quiet for a bit. No, he wasn’t okay and it was obvious that Emile could very quickly tell. Instead of just flat out saying how he was feeling, Patton just smiled softly and nodded. “Everything’s gonna be fine…” At least, that’s what he wanted to believe.

The two walked together down the hall to their classes. Emile didn’t have the same first period, but he decided to walk with Patton to his band class anyway.

As they walked, Patton was still able to hear what some of the other students were saying. One of them saw Patton walking with Emile and whispered to their friend…

“I guess Logan wasn’t enough for him either, huh?”

\------

Logan glared down at the two boys. One good thing about his height is that he could seem relatively threatening if he wanted to, which definitely helped in this situation.

The blonde one confidently stared up at Logan, “What, beanpole?”

The shorter boy with black hair snickered the insult before joking, “Honestly, what the hell did Patton even see? Cheating on Roman for _you_?”

“I did not do anything with Patton. I am his friend,” Logan spoke in a monotone voice. It was clear he was on the verge of snapping.

The blonde one smirked up at him, rolling his eyes. “Uh-huh… sure.”

“Listen--” Logan started, but was cut off with another insult.

“Ohhh, he’s getting defensive! I heard he tried to beat up Roman, but failed!” The blonde said.

The short one then decided to act all dramatic, trembling in fake fear. “Oh no! He’s going to beat us up! Hah.”

Oh, so Roman had told even more lies? Fucking wonderful.

\------

Emile had tried to start a conversation with Patton, to at least get him to say anything besides a simple yes or no. It was difficult, but he eventually got Patton to start using full sentences again. It didn’t matter what the two were talking about, just as long as Emile would be able to keep Patton busy for a few minutes.

As they were talking, Emile spotted Logan up ahead. He didn’t want Patton to have any of those negative thoughts come up again at the sight of him. He stopped them both for a moment and said, “Dogs. Dogs are nice.”

Clearly Emile wasn’t very good at this.

Patton looked at him, confused at first. Of course dogs were nice, why would Emile feel the need to point that out? It wasn’t until his gaze had fallen on what lied ahead did he understand what Emile was trying to do.

They kept walking, and eventually they were in hearing distance.

And Logan had snapped.

“I would never even consider doing anything of the sort with Patton. He is too… emotional. Childish, even. He is not at all mature in the slightest. I am his friend, and I have been trying to help him-- Nevermind. You two are too fucking stupid to even understand.” And he had said it with a harsh tone. All of it. Even the part about Patton.

Logan was glaring down at the two of them, but it turned to confusion as the two boys glanced between each other with a mildly angry and confused expression. “Damn, dude…” The black haired one spoke up, “You don’t have to be so rude. The guy _did_ just lose his boyfriend thanks to you.”

Logan’s eyes widened. They were right. He had been way too harsh…

And Patton had heard all of it.

Emile quickly turned to face Patton, frantically speaking, “Uh… Pat, okay… I know that sounds bad, but I’m sure--”

“That’s why he’s being so nice,” Patton stared at Logan, not even turning to face Emile as he spoke quietly, “He feels sorry for me. He thinks I’m immature, over-emotional…”

All this time, Patton thought-- Well, it doesn’t matter what he thought. It doesn’t beat what he just heard. He could already feel tears starting to sting his eyes. He didn’t want to cry in front of all of these people. He turned around and quickly started to make his way to a nearby bathroom.

“Aw no-- Patton wait!” Before going after the other, Emile had taken one last look at where Logan was standing. How dare he say such things about his best friend? Emile tuned everything out as he glared at Logan. Yeah, he was mad. 

He could deal with this later. Right now, he needed to go after Patton.

Logan had turned his head when he heard a girl shout, “Look!”

And he saw Patton with the beginnings of tears forming in the corners of his eyes. The look of pain in his expression. He ran.

_Shit._

Emile had turned to look at Logan, and Logan was faced with the most withering glare he had ever seen, one of pure hatred. Logan knew he had definitely fucked up.

Logan looked back at the boys, who were now snickering at his misfortune. Logan gave them one last glare before following Emile, assuming that he was following Patton to wherever he had run to.

Patton didn’t want to hear whatever it is Emile had to say. He had dealt with so much recently. Roman, the fight, the breakup, and now this? The one person who he thought genuinely cared for him apparently just feels bad for him. Patton didn’t know how much more of this he could take. He entered the bathroom, but stopped in his tracks. Some other guys had been in there, and when they saw Patton they couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“Aww look, he’s crying!” One of them said. “What, did you little toy dump you, too?” They were referring to Logan…

At that moment, Emile had entered. He saw Patton had tears rolling down his cheeks and some of the guys laughing at him, so Emile stepped in, grabbed Patton’s arm protectively, and scolded, “Leave him alone!”

They looked at Emile, then back at Patton. “Oh my gosh-- he already has a new one!” 

Emile had to push down even more anger when they said that, staying dead silent as he gave them the same death stare he had just given Logan.

“He’s right,” One of the boys spoke in a falsely kind tone, “Let’s leave them alone so they can have their fun in private.” They laughed as they walked out.

As soon as they were gone, Patton removed his arm from Emile’s grasp, and moved into the closest stall to lock himself in. And then he let all of his tears fall, soon devolving into sobs. Emile stood outside, a distraught expression on his face. “Patton, please… come on, open up,” He tried asking.

And Logan was practically running, trying to find where Emile went. As he turned the corner out of the hallway, he saw a group of boys leaving the bathroom, laughing to each other.

One of the boys pointed at him, letting out a small gasp before grinning ear to ear. He shouted, “Hey, look! Toy number one has arrived!”

The boys continued to laugh, ignoring Logan’s glare, and strolled through the hallways to wherever they were going.

Logan opened the bathroom door, and saw Emile leaning against a stall door, and he heard Patton’s sobs. Logan thought about leaving in that split second, but Emile had already spotted him.

Patton heard someone open the door. He flinched, terrified of who it could be. Another person who had come to make fun of him? Make him feel even worse than he already does?

Why did he assume someone entered and someone didn’t leave? Well, for one, because he could see Emile’s shoes on the other side of the door, and because he heard Emile yelling.

Emile, upon seeing Logan, had instantly given him a look as if he was some sort of walking virus. Emile was never one to get mad at other people, and if he did then it would never get to the point of him exploding… But this was about Patton, his best friend. No way in hell was he about to let Logan stroll in here and just try to convince Patton he didn’t mean what he said. If he didn’t mean it, then why would he say it?

“You!” Emile crossed his arms, taking a step away from the stall where Patton was crying, “You selfish human being! Did you come in here just to make him feel even more awful?!”

“No, no!” Logan honestly looked terrified at Emile pure fury. “I came to apologize.”

Patton had been listening to what Emile was saying, and he was actually pretty shocked. He has never heard Emile this mad before. But then--

Patton felt his heart stop when he heard who it was that Emile was talking to. The sound of Logan’s voice just made him want to disappear forever. Patton was so heartbroken that he wasn’t even sure if anything could fix this. He felt like his world was falling apart.

And yet, he still listened as Logan spoke.

Logan felt like shit for what he’d said, obviously. Still, he immediately backtracked upon seeing Emile’s expression fill with even more hatred. “But, I’ll leave if that’s what Patton wants. I’ll leave and--” He cut himself off. He didn’t know how to continue.

He would do anything for Patton. He would ask Mr. Torres to separate their group if Patton didn’t want to be near him. He would sit alone so that Patton could still be around Virgil. He would even change his classes so that Patton wouldn’t have to be near him at all. 

He had metaphorically dumped a gallon of lemon juice on a fresh wound that Roman had just dug. And Logan knew there was nothing he could say that could ever fully heal the damage he had just caused.

Emile didn’t even care if Logan came to apologize or not. Logan had just caused Patton so much more pain, and Emile wasn’t having shit. “Great idea! How about you just leave and never talk to my best friend ever again!”

Logan flinched when Emile started yelling in such a sarcastically happy tone. His eyes widened, and he reached behind him for the door handle, but--

“Emile will you be quiet?!” Patton said through his cries from inside the stall. Emile instantly shut his mouth.

But he heard Patton. Logan stopped where he was, removing his hand from the door handle. He looked at Emile for a second or too, still fully aware of his glare. He then looked toward the stall that Patton was in.

“Patton…?” He talked quietly, like he was scared to hurt the emotional boy even further. His voice was filled with concern and remorse.

And he realized, Logan wasn’t scared of hurting Patton. He was scared of himself for already doing so.

Patton didn’t respond. But he was listening. He hugged his knees as more tears fell down his face and onto the floor. He didn’t want to show his face to anyone, especially not right now. He already assumed Logan just felt bad for him, so all of this was just a confirmation of that.

Emile stayed silent as he had been told, but honestly he just wanted to keep shouting at Logan to let him know how badly he’d just messed everything up. Emile made some gestures, basically saying that if he hurt Patton again, he would kill him.

Logan actually did cower back at Emile’s gestures. He wasn’t at all threatening, but at this moment Logan knew that he deserved to let Emile punch him in the face.

“Patton, can we talk, please? I’m so sorry and I just--” He bunched his hands into fists and looked away from the stall. He didn’t know how to respond. He let out a shaky breath. It sounded like he was on the verge of tears.

Patton didn’t want to hear any excuse Logan might have for his choice of words. He wasn’t sure if he could even believe him or not. He had chosen to believe all of the nice things Logan had said, and look where that got him!

He thought Logan cared for him. But, maybe it was just an act this whole time. Sure seemed like it now, didn’t it? Saying that he was hurt would be an understatement. Patton was crushed.

Emile, despite his pure, unfiltered fury, knew it would be a good idea to leave them alone during this conversation. He wasn’t exactly very trustful of Logan right now. Nevertheless, he stepped out of the bathroom, but stayed close to the door, just in case.

Logan sighed in relief once Emile was out of the room.

He sat down on the floor, leaning against the wall behind him. Logan took a moment to start speaking. He didn’t know _how_ to start.

“Patton… sometimes my emotions get the better of me, and-- And of course that doesn’t excuse anything I said! I just… I want to explain.”

He paused, evaluating how to continue. “I really care for you, and, in all honesty, I meant what I said. You are emotional. And that’s incredible! It… has always been something I could never quite understand. How you can be so happy, or so sad or angry… and how you express it. And you are childish. In such a way that you are… you have this young, childlike wonder about you that I could never quite experience when I was younger.”

Logan was rambling now, not even caring what he said. He cut off sentences, trying and failing just to explain. He just needed to convey his thoughts, how sorry he was, how much he cared. If he didnt--

That thought scared him. Who knew what would happen if he couldn’t properly convey his emotions in this moment? He struggled a lot with it… conveying emotions. And now, it could risk his friendship with the most kind, loving, incredible person in the world. If he couldn’t tell Patton how sorry he was, how much he cared… it could ruin Logan forever. He wouldn’t be able to handle it.

“I was so angry, Patton. Those two boys, they…” He had to take a deep breath to calm himself, “They were insinuating that I destroyed a _happy_ relationship. They believed Roman’s lies.”

And he paused for a moment before explaining the complete truth.

“Nothing, absolutely _nothing_ excuses what I said. I know that. I don’t expect you to come running out of that stall crying tears of joy and forgiving me…” Logan gave a small, sad laugh. Barely even a laugh, it was almost hollow. This was real life, and things like that didn’t happen.

“I just want you to understand how sorry I am, and that I meant everything I said last night. I want to help you, and my anger got the better of me in that moment and I wanted to tell them they’re wrong, to attempt to get some people to back off of these rumors and leave you alone… I was angry at them. Not at you. I’m sorry...”

He let out a shaky breath. And he was aware that he was crying. Logan hadn’t cried in ages. He didn’t even bother to wipe at the few tears that were running down his cheeks, instead hugging his knees closer to his chest as he mumbled quietly. A plea. He was desperate to keep Patton from leaving his life due to a few stupid words he had spoken when he was overwhelmed by his feelings. Emotions always got in the way, didn’t they?

Patton had been Logan’s awakening from his prison of routine. Schoolwork, barely anyone to talk to, an unloving family, a monotonous, boring life, and keeping every little emotion inside and acting professional at all times. Never having a life.

He couldn’t lose him.

And Logan tried, he _tried_ to express just how desperate he was in a single sentence, “I just… I don’t want to lose you.”

During the whole time Logan spoke, Patton had stayed dead quiet. He wasn’t completely silent, due to his sniffling and slight hiccups. His quiet crying had gone so far that he needed to take off his glasses due to the fact he couldn’t even see through them anymore.

He stared at one of the four walls that surrounded him, hanging on to each word that Logan said as if they were thin pieces of threat that he just couldn’t let go of.

Logan was someone he admired deeply, dare he say more than Logan admired _him_. His words always meant the world to Patton, so to hear such cruel and heartbreaking words escape the other’s mouth only minutes ago… well, Patton just couldn’t handle it.

After Logan was finished, Patton was still unable to speak. He felt like he was such a mess after all of this-- this chaos. He didn’t know if he could even look at Logan at this moment.

So Logan listened to the quiet sniffles coming from Patton.

And he breathed in, and out… and he resigned himself to not getting a reply. Honestly, as long as Patton listened to him, Logan was fine.

He just didn’t want Patton to go the rest of his life thinking Logan meant those few words he had spoken when he let his emotions get the better of him. He didn’t want Patton to believe Logan actually thought those things. Because he didn’t.

But if Patton wanted Logan gone, it was very understandable. Logan had said very cruel words about Patton at a time when the sweet, emotional boy had been devastated by an abusive relationship and going through the emotional distress of ending said relationship.

Logan knew all of this, so he quietly stood, wiped away the tears streaks that had run down during his attempt at apologizing, and quietly said, “So… I’m sorry. I’ll see you later.”

Honestly, Logan doubted if that was even true. Would he see Patton later? Would he see Patton again at all?

Patton didn’t even bother to move from his spot when Logan said his goodbye. No response. No goodbye, no see you later… nothing. Patton just needed some time.

He needed to think about what he was going to do. What he was _supposed_ to do. Did people expect him to walk out of here smiling, all happy? Breaking up with Roman was supposed to be something to be happy about. Something that meant he would be free to do what he wants, to go without being picked apart for his flaws… Now look where he is.

He didn’t know if he could even handle his first class. Walking out into those halls would be-- well it wouldn’t be pretty, to say the least.

Maybe he could just stay here a few more minutes. Maybe longer.

Logan opened the door, waiting for a second. Waiting for a response. And when he got none, he walked out and began heading to his first class.

The people in there would stare. They would whisper. They would say horrible things about him. Logan knew that.

But it didn’t matter. No words mattered to him other than Patton’s in this moment. He just didn’t want Patton to hate him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am so s o r r y--


	22. Chapter 22

Emile watched as Logan stepped out of the bathroom, keeping his eyes trained at the ground and not even daring to look up. Emile continued to watch him walk away and down the hall before turning back into the bathroom.

He stepped in before closing the door behind him slowly. “Patton…?” He started, quietly making his way over to the stall, “You okay?”

There were no words, not even a sound at first. It was quiet, before the sound of Patton’s quiet sniffling picked up again. The sound made Emile flinch slightly, inching back from the door. He had no clue if Logan made things better or worse. “It--it’s okay, Patton…” He spoke from the other side of the door.

After a couple more seconds of quiet sobbing, all Patton said was, “Go away.”

Emile knew that Patton was a very touchy person and was always happy to receive physical affection when he was feeling down, but… he wasn’t feeling down. Patton was literally devastated. Emile didn’t want to just do nothing, but what choice did he have? Slowly, he made his way back to the door with furrowed eyebrows and a worried expression. He didn’t say anything else before leaving.

And it had been a long, long time since Emile had left the bathroom. Classes were happening, obviously, and it left Patton completely alone. After minutes passed, Patton was left in the stall with dried tear tracks on his face and a feeling of emptiness. He didn’t feel sad, or mad, not even hurt at this point. He didn’t know what he should be feeling anymore.

He was just exhausted.

Another few minutes passed in which Patton calmed himself down, caught his breath. Afterwards, he picked up his glasses and stepped out of the stall to wash his face.

And he just stared into the mirror. His world was falling apart and so was he. There was nothing he could do about it.

Now that everyone was in class, Patton took his chance to step out of the bathroom. He looked around the halls. He was right, it was completely empty. By now his teacher had most likely marked him as absent, so what was even the point of going to class? He knew if he stayed, chances were he would just have another breakdown. Who knows what would happen during that one.

Patton was never one for skipping school, but he didn’t see any other choice he could make. He just didn’t want to be here.

He walked into the nurses office, told them he was feeling sick, and got permission to walk home by lying and saying it was barely a minute-long walk. He also looked like a complete mess, so that was in his favor.

So he walked home.

As soon as he opened the door to his house, he was faced with the living room where everything had happened last night. He stood there with his hand on the door handle, staring at the couch where he and Logan sat doing the project, at the corner where he was cowering, and back at the door where he had said goodnight to Logan.

Without even a moment’s hesitation, he shut the door and immediately headed toward the stairs. And he locked himself in his room with the two weasels.

His phone had been turned on earlier due to the fact he also needed to lie to his mom about feeling sick so that she would have a warning about him being home early. 

He sat on bed, scrolling through all of the notifications, new and old. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what they were all about.

Fred and George watched Patton from their cage. George was used to knowing when Patton was upset, so he seemed bothered that he was stuck in here and couldn’t help.

And Patton continued to scroll. He didn’t feel a single thing as he did so. Not a single tear came from him.

\------

As he left the bathroom, Logan kept his eyes toward the floor. He didn’t want to look at Emile. Was he a coward? Oh, absolutely. 

He walked down the halls and faintly heard the sound of the creaky bathroom door opening and closing behind him as he walked away. At least Emile would be there for Patton. He deserved to be comforted.

A minute later, Logan was sitting down in his first class. He’d gone there on autopilot, not even thinking about where he was going. 

What class was this again? He didn’t really know. He didn’t really care. Nothing crossed his mind other than Patton. His brain replayed everything from Friday night’s party, Patton’s laughter on the day he had given him Fred, the events of last night, and every excruciating detail of this morning. Down to every word he’d spoken, every emotion he’d felt.

The teacher began talking about formulas. Oh right. This is calculus.

Logan stared vacantly at the board, watching the teacher write in swooping letters, x’s and y’s, numbers and equal signs. The teacher said something, Logan paid no attention to it. Still just his failures of this morning. Still just Patton.

“Logan!” The teacher shouted, pulling Logan out of his haze. “You are one of my best students,” Oh, she sounded angry, “I do not see why  _ you _ of all people would be staring into space, with no notebook out, no homework turned in, and completely ignoring my every word.” She sounded harsh, disappointment evident in her every word. “I expected more from you.”

The students around him snickered, knowing part of the reason for his inattentiveness. Of course, they only knew one bit of the truth. It was about Patton, but not in the way that they thought. They wouldn’t understand, ever. Rumors had that kind of hold on people.

“Of course. Sorry,” Logan mumbled, quickly pulling out his notebook. He didn’t write anything for the rest of class, but at least he wasn’t yelled at again. He continued to watch the board, hoping that at least looking in the direction would convince the teacher that he was paying attention.

And soon the bell rang. He kept his eyes looking down at the floor, absentmindedly making his way through the day. 

There was nothing else he could really do.

Thankfully, his other teachers weren’t as observant as Mrs. Landers, so he got away with doing minimal work. 

He couldn’t focus on anything but his thoughts. He thought he’d been distracted before when Patton was acting different than usual, before the party, before he knew the truth… that was laughable now. That amount of distraction was nothing compared to this.

He could barely even focus on moving his feet to get to his next class.

And he continued to make his way through the day. He didn’t focus on anything but the necessities. Everything beyond writing when required to write and staring blankly at pages and occasionally flipping to the next one when he was required to read, he just thought about Patton.

It felt like an eternity before lunch arrived, and Logan sat down at his usual spot. Virgil soon accompanied him.

“Logan… you okay? You look really out of it.”

Logan continued to stare at his unopened lunch box as he spoke in a monotone, yet miserable voice, “No. I am not okay.”

Virgil scooted a bit closer, looking up at his closest friend with utmost concern, “I assume you probably don’t wanna talk about it?”

“You would be correct.”

Virgil accepted the fact that he wouldn’t get any more conversation out of this, so he quietly turned back to face his lunch.

Logan continued to sit up straight, looking forward, but he turned to look when Emile and Remy walked into the room. No Patton.

Emile looked like he was talking to Remy (who was distracted by his phone), alongside a bunch of other people, but he obviously couldn’t hear them from this distance.

The two went to sit at their usual table, which was close to the massive wall of windows in the cafeteria. As they took their seat next to one another, Emile stopped talking for a moment, pausing to look at Remy. “Are you even listening to me?” He accused. Remy gave a nod as a response. “Mhm… So what did I just say?”

Remy looked up at Emile, set his phone down for a second, and proceeded to say word for word what Emile had said ever since they walked into the room. When he was finished, he went back on his phone and explained, “Just because I don’t look at you doesn’t mean I’m not paying attention.”

Emile stayed silent for a few seconds, “...Sorry I doubted you.”

They looked like they were just having a normal conversation, at least from across the room. And a thought entered Logan’s mind, and he immediately wanted to ignore it.

Logan didn’t know Emile very well. Emile had always been Patton’s friend, and had been around them sometimes, but he had mostly just been an acquaintance to Logan, Virgil, and Roman.

And Emile probably despised him now, so there’s that.

Those were Logan’s reasons for why he should definitely  _ not _ go up and apologize to Emile, but nevertheless, Logan wanted to do it. Not only had he hurt Patton earlier, but he had hurt Emile as well. Emile was a good friend of Patton and he definitely hated Logan for what he had done.

Logan turned to Virgil and muttered a sentence before quickly standing up, “I’ll be right back.”

Virgil noticed the contraction in his sentence. He was nervous? He watched Logan stand up, about to ask him where he was going before he began walking. And he saw Logan make a beeline straight for Emile and Remy.

Great, they’re involved in this too, now? Virgil was losing track of all of the issues. Nonetheless, he let Logan go. It was probably something important.

Considering Emile was facing almost directly away from Logan, he wasn’t aware that he was coming over to the table. Remy was the first to notice while he opened up his lunch bag. He unpacked the juice pouch, gummies, and the sandwich with the crust cut off for Emile, handing it over while he cautioned, “String bean, five o’clock.”

Emile looked to the left. Remy tried to correct him, “No-- your five o’clock.” And then Emile tilted his head up slightly, still looking left. “Other way.” Emile looked down. “Emile, behind you.”

“Ooohh,” Emile said as soon as he spotted Logan. During that whole time, Remy didn’t seem annoyed by the other one bit. Which was surprising. Emile turned back to Remy, “Why didn’t you say so sooner?”

Remy gave a small shrug, even though he technically did say so sooner.

Logan walked up to Emile, and glancing between the two of them, he guessed it was safe to speak, “Emile, I just wanted to say sorry about earlier.” He said exactly what he was thinking. It was easier to do so now, considering the fact that when he had previously tried to voice his thoughts, he was on the verge of tears, sitting on the bathroom floor talking to Patton.

Patton was different.

Still, Logan hadn’t quite expected Emile to hiss at him. Yes, he hissed at him. 

Remy reached over, patting the top of Emile’s hand that was resting on the table. He interjected by saying, “Calm down there, strawberry shortcake.”

Emile picked up his pack of gummies, handing them to Remy so that he could open them. He still kept his glare directed at Logan. “Apology not accepted!” Remy handed him his gummies and he angrily ate one as Remy silently watched the scene, sipping on his coffee.

Usually, Emile was never so quick to turn down an apology. But this was Logan he was talking about. You know. The guy who literally gave Patton, his best friend, a breakdown.

From what Logan’s heard, Emile is really nice, but… well, he did deserve that reaction, didn’t he? Still, he tried again, “Okay, please just hear me out? I never wanted to hurt Patton--”

“Of course you wouldn’t! Why would anyone want that?! He’s the kindest person around here and--” Emile went on to ramble about how Patton didn’t deserve this, how Logan was a complete jerk, and even sidetracked from what he was saying once or twice.

He did all of that in about two minutes, so chances are Logan probably didn’t even understand what he was saying by this point. Emile knew he could talk very quickly when he was nervous or upset. While that was happening, Remy gave Logan a look of ‘look what you did.’

When Emile was finished, he looked over to Remy. “Don’t you agree?” Remy just nodded, although not getting a clue of what the other had said.

Logan, however, had at least tried to follow Emile’s train of thought. He listened to every word, knowing he deserved to be yelled at, but still… the things that he had said were completely wrong. It seemed Emile was done ranting, instead continuing to angrily eat the multi-colored, fruit-flavored gummies. 

So, Logan spoke up, “I-I’m not going to just stand here and be scolded by someone who doesn’t even understand the extent that I care for Patton.” Rambling further, he spilled all of his thoughts that had plagued his mind this entire day, “I may have only known him for about a year, but he’s become one of my closest companions during this past week.”

He hated admitting this to someone he barely even knew, but still, Logan went on, “I’m scared. I fucked up, I know. I just don’t want to lose Patton… I’ve never felt as happy, or as sad, or… I’ve never felt as much emotion in my life compared to the short amount of time I’ve been around to help Patton. He means more to me than I can put into words.”

Unsurprisingly, Emile had been taking mental notes as Logan spoke about Patton. He did this unintentionally to a lot of people when they spoke about their feelings. That’s probably why he’s considered at least relatively smart around here. He could pretty much tell someone’s emotions just by what they’re wearing.

Obviously he was still upset with Logan, but he didn’t speak until Logan was done. “Well, maybe if you didn’t say all those horrible things, I would actually believe you! Truly you make it  _ very _ convincing, but then again I guess it’s easy for you to fake a lot of things considering how well you pretended to actually care about him.”

Remy and Logan both winced at Emile’s words.

For someone who was known in the school for being the person everyone expected to be a therapist, he sure did miss the mark on Logan’s thoughts.

Even though Logan knew that what Emile said was false, he was still hurt by it. “I do care about Patton…” He tried to defend himself. Even though Logan was standing, and Emile was not, he felt like he was being looked down upon. Being judged. Honestly, he might have even deserved it. 

Nope, he definitely did.

Remy looked back and forth between Emile and Logan, and then turned to Emile. “…Did you take a nap today?”

Emile shook his head, “No! No I did not!”

So Remy handed Emile his juice pouch, putting the straw in for him. Emile sipped it as Remy finally turned to speak to Logan. It was hard to tell what Remy was feeling due to the fact he had his shades on and usually spoke in a way that made him seem like he was fed up with everyone’s bullshit. “Don’t take it personally,” He reassured, “He has a lot of feelings about his friends.”

Emile glared. Remy was right though, usually he would be understanding and forgiving. After seeing what had happened to Patton though, he was really frustrated.

“Well, I really do care about Patton. You’ve probably heard a lot about me being an emotionless robot, but I was being serious when I said Patton really helps me bring out my emotions more.”

Emile continued sipping his juice. He needed this moment to calm down a little, which is why Remy was now the one talking. He already knew how Emile worked, so he let him be.

“Well, I’m not much of a therapist compared to Emile, but I believe you.” Remy shrugged, “No one would go this far if they didn’t love the person they were talking about.”

Love? Remy had said it very casually, if it was just a word to throw around to describe anything. It was quite a weird way to phrase the way Logan feels about Patton. Then again, he would say he loves Virgil, so… why did the word feel out of place when applied to Patton? He was just as much a friend to Patton as he is to Virgil.

Logan decided to ignore that specific word when replying to Remy, “Yes, I suppose. I really do want Patton to be okay. He’s gone through a lot recently and I feel terrible for adding to the list of everything that’s hurting him.”

However, Logan’s mind wandered back to that word. Love.

Again, Logan cared for Patton a lot. And sure, maybe Patton did make him feel very happy, and he felt much more sympathy and care for Patton than he had ever felt for anyone in his entire life…

And he also hated whenever Roman would make fun of Patton’s weight, or when he would casually tell him he didn’t look that good by doing subtle things like fixing his hair or commenting on his clothes. Patton was very adorable, despite whatever Roman had to say about--

Wait, adorable?

When Logan didn’t seem to deny the fact he loved Patton, Remy had then assumed the two were probably dating. He wasn’t really one for rumors unless he started them, but the stuff Logan was saying seemed like pretty good proof that something was going on.

So, Remy spoke casually, “Well, yeah. I’m pretty sure anyone would be crushed if their boyfriend did what you just did.”

Emile nearly choked on his juice. Remy had to pat his back to help him out. Remy blurted, “Jesus Christ, what happened?” Emile took a moment. He needed a damn moment.

“SO YOU GUYS ARE  _ DATING _ AND YOU SAID SOMETHING LIKE THAT?!” Emile was about to flipping lose it.

Logan’s eyes had widened at the word ‘boyfriend’, and then it got even worse when Emile started choking. And then Logan panicked even  _ more _ when Emile began yelling. Shit. People were staring now!

“No, no! We’re not dating!” Logan glared at Remy, “What the hell, you believe those rumors, too?” After speaking to Remy, he quietly mumbled to himself, “I’ve dealt with enough of this shit…”

Remy crossed his arms, leaning back in the chair, “Well no, but you didn’t say that you didn’t love him so I just assumed--” 

He was cut off by Emile lightly hitting Remy’s arm. “Don’t scare me like that!”

“How am I the bad guy here? He’s the one that didn’t say anything the first time!” Remy rubbed his arm slightly as he spoke. Emile could really hit hard if he wanted to. Still, after barely a second, Remy let out a sigh and said, “Okay, fine. I’m sorry. I won’t assume anything like that again.” It was directed at both Emile and Logan.

Emile gave a small, assertive nod, “Good! You nearly gave me a heart attack.” After speaking, he went back to eating his food.

Remy turned back to face Logan. “But  _ anyway _ , whether he’s your boyfriend or not--” He stopped to make sure Emile wasn’t choking. When he saw he wasn’t, Remy continued, “I gotta admit, what you said really did crush the guy. It was pretty bad. But if you two are as good of friends as you say you are, he’ll forgive you or something.”

After all, Remy has had some similar experiences with Emile. They were still great friends despite having similar conflicts in the past. Not as bad as  _ this _ train wreck, but still. 

Logan was able to give a tentative, slightly awkward smile now that the tense situation was over. Kind of. People around them were finally returning their attention to whatever they were doing before, at least.

“Well, I--” Logan cut himself off.

He was going to say he didn’t love Patton, to correct Remy. But for some reason, he couldn’t.

“I have to go back to Virgil now. Again, I am sorry, Emile.”

Remy looked over to Emile, who clearly still didn’t want to accept Logan’s apology. Remy poked him. “C’mon… say it’s okay? C’mooonn… do it for Patton.” He said this all teasingly, with a small smile. Remy could usually get to Emile when he played his cards right.

After a few seconds of crossed arms and gradually fading glares, Emile finally gave up his stubbornness and submitted to the begging. “Alright, fine! Apology accepted.”

Remy gave a short nod of acceptance, “Good job, I’ll bring you some M&M’s tomorrow.” When Emile gasped and let a huge grin cross his face, Remy couldn’t help but smile despite the fact he rolled his eyes. No one could tell, though, since he had his shades on.

“The ones without nuts?” Emile asked excitedly.

“Sure.”

Why weren’t they dating again?

Logan smiled at the two. He didn’t know either of them very well, but he could tell they were very close. He was also very very grateful for Remy at this moment. He was relieved that Emile had (albeit reluctantly) accepted his apology. “Thank you,” He said before turning back to the table with Virgil.

As Logan walked away, Emile watched him for a few more seconds before turning back to face Remy.

“I know you see it, too,” Remy asserted, knowing for a fact that Emile saw what he saw. He picked up his phone and started scrolling again.

“See… what?” Maybe Emile was in denial, sure. He knew full well what Remy was talking about. 

Remy looked up from his phone with an unimpressed look. “Don’t play dumb. We both know that you can tell how a person feels from about a state away, Emile.” He went back to looking at his phone.

Emile sighed. He knew it, Remy knew it, it was obvious. 

“Hey, look,” Remy spoke up again, placing his phone down to actually look at Emile, “I’m sure once he realizes it, things will be fine.” He paused, “Hopefully it’s gonna be better than it was with Roman.”

\------

A few seconds of silence passed in which Virgil looked up at Logan expectantly. When Logan didn’t say anything, Virgil finally asked, “Okay, what happened? You can’t just leave me stranded here alone for almost ten minutes without an explanation.”

“Alright…” Logan knew he couldn’t have gone without explaining the situation to Virgil. So, for the second time today, he just ranted about all of the shit that’s happened recently. Except now, it was about this morning. He knew he couldn’t explain why he wanted to talk to Emile without Virgil knowing about what happened this morning with Patton in the bathroom, so he told him everything.

“Well, shit,” Was all Virgil said. It was a pretty good summary of what happened.

Logan kept his eyes at the table as he nodded.

After that, the table went silent again. At least it was a slightly more comfortable silence this time. It allowed Logan some time to actually eat lunch. As he did so, he thought back to what Remy said. And what he had thought earlier. 

Thoughts came quickly, unexpectedly. People experienced thinking things that crossed their minds, completely out of their own control. Subconsciously, we all think some things and eventually they just… come out. So, thinking more in depth now… yes, Logan did find Patton cute. Why? He needed to figure this out.

Well, he first decided to think about what people found “cute” normally. First of all, there was the way Patton dressed. He was always wearing pastel colors and clothing adorned with cute animals and such. That might be part of it.

But there were also his eyes. A very pretty light blue color. And his freckles. And his very soft-looking, peanut-colored hair. And--

And his personality. Logan has explained it in-depth before, how he just seemed to have this infectious, magnetic quality about him, with his emotions. Bubbly and energetic, kind and loving. 

And suddenly, as he thought it through, Logan had a realization…

He was attracted to Patton.


	23. Chapter 23

_He was attracted to Patton._

Logan stared at the table with furrowed eyebrows and complete confusion evident on his face. The only thought in his head was that one sentence. He was attracted to Patton. 

He thanked all of the deities he didn’t believe in that Virgil was distracted with his lunch, because he knew damn well Virgil would be able to read the fact that his whole world had been turned upside down at this very moment.

Yes. There was no denying this, was there? 

He shook his head slightly when he noticed he was staring at the wall-- When did he look up from the table? Was he that distracted?-- and he nearly turned to face Virgil. He wanted to… did he want to tell Virgil his realization?

There has never been a point in Logan’s life where he had a “crush” before. He hated that word. He knew, at the very least, that he was attracted to men, because he found them physically appealing, but never to a point of an emotional connection or desire to date them… Still, he wasn’t “crushing” on Patton. That was a childish way of saying it. Girls who were obsessed with celebrities had crushes. Middle schoolers on the playground had crushes.

Patton had literally made Logan feel more emotions in this past week than he had ever felt in his life. Some emotions were negative, sure, but never because of Patton. They were because of Patton’s situation, because of sympathy… And guilt. That too.

Logan was glad for the bell that rang in that moment, cutting off his train of thought. He didn’t know if he even wanted to tell Virgil. Ever. He would definitely avoid telling Patton at all costs. Logan had _just_ hurt Patton mere hours ago.

No way was he ever dropping this bomb on Patton. He never would.

Either way, he said a quick, almost hectic farewell to Virgil and headed to his next class.

Logan suffered through English class, helping Gabe understand the basics of what they were doing just so they wouldn’t all suffer on Friday. The whole time he wished Patton was there, interrupting the annoyance he felt and just making him smile, as usual.

And then he sat in his final class, mind focused on nothing but Patton. For nearly two hours, with his English class and this one combined. Doing absolutely nothing but cursing himself for what he had done this morning, as well as the thoughts of his newly discovered attraction to the adorable, beautiful, freckle-covered, kind, loving Patton Kratz.

By the end of the day, Logan nearly drove out of the parking lot before Virgil got in the car due to his complete distraction.

Logan dropped Virgil off at his house, ignoring the concerned glances continually being shot in his direction.

When Logan got home and settled, he brought out his phone to text Patton. His main worry was that his message would be ignored due to the overwhelming amount of notifications Patton was inevitably getting. That, or Patton would just choose to ignore it.

Neither was very great.

Logan struggled with his words, typing and backspacing for nearly three minutes before he finally came up with something at least somewhat suitable. And as he pressed the button to send it, he held his breath. It was harder to press that single button than he ever believed it could be. He was terrified of what Patton’s answer would be. 

Or if he would even answer at all.

_[Patton, I just wanted to say sorry again for earlier. Can we please talk? It’s probably easier now than being in the same room. I understand if you don’t want to see me or talk to me for a while, though.]_

\------

Hours ago, Patton had been laying in his bed, staring at the ceiling. The curtains were closed, the house was quiet, and despite their best efforts, the weasels didn’t help him feel much better, even though they were now out of their cage. They laid against Patton’s side. They obviously didn’t know what was wrong, but they could sense it. Patton didn’t even move to pet them.

The room was dark except for the blue light that shone on the ceiling whenever Patton would get another notification from his phone. Each shine of the blue light was accompanied by a small ding from his phone. He laid on his bed, motionless despite the constant dinging of his phone and flickering of a soft blue light to darkness that played out on his ceiling. Patton just couldn’t be bothered.

There wasn’t a single movement or feeling from him.

His mind had replayed everything that happened today at least a hundred times by now. Probably more.

Patton has felt pretty bad feelings before; anger, sadness, guilt. But this was beyond those feelings. Something he never really felt before now. It was a terrible, awful feeling. It was painful, but not physically. He didn’t even know how to explain it.

Every single second from today just kept coming in and out of his mind. From all the stares, the whispers, to those terrible words.

He glanced over at his phone. Another bad idea had popped into his head. As if he wasn’t already torturing himself by doing nothing.

Reaching over, he picked it up. He opened it to some social media. Instagram? Snapchat? Who cares. He just clicked a random notification and started to look through each and every message. So many cruel words.

Hours passed, and Patton had decided to allow himself to take a nap. It wouldn’t help anything. He knew as soon as he woke up, he would have to face the harsh world again.

Everything was falling apart. He was an emotional mess. Some friends were now his enemies, everyone thought of him as some sort of untrustworthy, cheating skank. Patton didn’t want to be seen outside of his own house anymore.

All of this is the span of two days. Less than that. If he had to describe it to someone, he would probably say he felt like spiders crawled inside every part of him and they live there.

No, that wasn’t good enough.

How did he feel? Worse than ever before. Gnawing at his insides, making him feel sick to his stomach, creeping in and flooding over him as he laid and stared at the ceiling, still flashing from the flickering blue light of his phone. 

Empty.

That’s the word he’s been looking for. Empty. He didn’t _feel_ anything. He didn’t _want_ to feel anything.

It’s only been a few minutes now since Patton woke up from his nap. And he looked around when he heard his phone. This was a text. He knew because it was a specific ringtone compared to all of the social media apps that had notifications flooding his device.

It could be a person who was randomly on his contacts from a group project. Someone who had shared his number so that people could harass him further. Worse things have happened. It could be anyone.

So Patton didn’t move an inch. By this point, the negative thoughts immediately entered his mind, and he assumed it was just another message about him being a terrible human being. At this point, it seemed like maybe they were a little bit right.

So he didn’t reply. He didn’t even bother to search around for his phone.

Logan waited for a long time. He didn’t do anything. He checked his phone every single minute. Multiple times a minute.

His parents were able to track his phone, so they would know that he had opened his phone nearly a hundred times by now. Logan didn’t care. He didn’t care that they would question him later. It didn’t matter. 

Logan’s mind was running rampant with so many possibilities. Over-thinking. One of his worst weaknesses.

At one point, he just gave up his pacing and sat on his chair, his head resting on one hand as he stared down at his phone, which was sitting in his other hand. And he waited for a response.

As more time passed, Patton just started to feel tired. Not just as in sleep, but just… tired. Tired of so many things. He was tired of showing his face, tired of being optimistic, tired of--

Well, he just wasn’t feeling too well right now. Fred and George had been by his side this whole time. Fred didn’t even try biting Patton. Both of them could tell he was acting very different than usual.

Throughout the day, he’s been getting non-stop messages and notifications. He was tired of that, too.

He looked around on the bed for his phone so he could finally shut it off. Eventually, he found it on the floor next to his bed. He probably knocked it off while he was sleeping. Reaching down, he picked it up to turn the notifications off, but before he could, the blue light shone once again as his phone automatically turned on as he picked it up.

And he saw a message from Logan.

Logan. Just great. He was one of the last people he wanted to be talking to right now. He wasn’t mad, or happy. He just read it. After a couple more minutes, Patton decided to respond.

_[yeah, sure]_

Logan felt a wave of relief wash over him now that Patton had responded. He knew he was still upset, he knew he was still completely overwhelmed. But if he was willing to talk, that’s all that Logan wanted.

Still, before he even dared to defend himself, he needed to know…

_[Are you okay? I know the answer is no, and I know that I’m completely responsible for that, but I just want to know if you’re okay. How do you feel?]_

How is it possible that Logan was rambling even through text? He was nervous. He was terrified that Patton hated him. But most importantly, he was terrified that Patton was believing all of the words that had been spoken against him recently. His own words included.

Patton read those first three words of the text. Was he okay? Is Logan serious? After everything that’s happened, he expects him to be okay?

He quietly sighed, reading the rest. He knew how this would go. Logan would probably be apologizing or just “worried” about him. He would say he’s fine, that things were gonna be fine, and that would be that.

_[everythings okay, i’m okay now]_

Patton had chosen to lie. Well, technically he was just saying what he thought Logan wanted to hear. He assumed Logan was asking because he felt guilty, or that he just felt pity for Patton.

Logan looked down at the message, not doing anything for a few seconds. He knew it was a lie. He just didn’t know what to do now.

Technically, he had gotten what he wanted to hear. But not really. Because Patton was obviously not okay. Still, he didn’t want to go demanding the truth. That would just make everything even worse.

_[I know you’re not okay. But I won’t pressure you to tell me.]_

He stared at the message. This was incredibly difficult. Comforting people was not what he was good at. So instead, he did what he did best. He told Patton the facts.

_[Patton, I’m not just here to say sorry and expect you to forgive me. That’s not realistic. I’m not just worried for you. I’m desperate for you to be okay, but that’s not to mean I expect you to be okay after all of this. No sane person would. But I still want you to feel better, even if it means I’m not there with you anymore.]_

He took a deep breath and sent out one last message.

_[I will do anything to make you feel better. And I fucked up, I know. So if what you want is for me to leave, I will.]_

It hurt to type. Logan had just discovered his feelings for Patton, but that didn’t matter. Patton mattered more. Still, telling Patton that he would leave if it’s what he truly wanted…?

Logan had no clue emotions could hurt so badly.

Patton started at Logan’s messages, silent as ever. It would be hard to even hear him breathing.

Right now, Patton didn’t know what he wanted. He didn’t know, but truly, deep down, he knew he probably couldn’t last without Logan being in his life. If anything, he probably needed the other more than ever. Especially during this time in his life.

He was hurting. A lot, actually. Patton didn’t know how to express anything right now. No, he didn’t want Logan to leave, but he also wasn’t sure if he wanted him around right now. He was confused and going through _so much_.

Patton could feel some tears stinging his eyes. How was it that his world had gone from everything being okay to his entire world falling apart in such a short amount of time?

He glanced back at Fred and George. They stared back. So Patton took a deep breath, faced his phone again, and sent three messages to Logan.

_[Language.]_

_[And once again, you would be right. As always. Why did I think I could even try hiding this from you?]_

And after a short pause, the third message came.

_[No, I don’t want you gone.]_

Logan honestly did feel a few tears spring to his eyes at the first message. A small, shallow laugh escaped him. His language was what Patton had focused on? The thought that Patton was still himself is what brought the tears. 

The second message came and Logan’s small, sad smile grew slightly. He didn’t like that Patton insinuated he was always right, because clearly this morning as well as many other points in his life were very obvious indicators that he fucked up a _lot_. But it was nice that he was admitting he wasn’t okay, even if he wasn’t saying it directly.

And then the third message. His smile grew a little more as he took in a deep breath in a failed attempt to keep the tears from actually falling.

 _Patton didn’t hate him._ At least not completely. He still wanted him there.

_[thank you]_

He didn’t care about capitalization, punctuation… anything. Just getting his gratification across to Patton. It had been difficult to type even that short message through the small droplets of tears that were now on his screen.

Had he really been crying that much? He wiped his screen and his face.

Patton finally moved. He sat up in his bed, criss-cross. Once seeing this, Fred and George immediately climbed into his lap to lay themselves down. It was just another way they could comfort their dad.

Patton wanted to smile at Logan’s reply, but he couldn’t. No matter how hard he tried, he just could manage to bring himself to smile.

_[you’re welcome]_

What else was he supposed to say? Patton could barely let himself think without terrible thoughts flooding his mind every second. He didn’t feel like himself at the moment.

All his life, he has been optimistic and cheerful. He has always tried to make everyone happy. Now, he can’t even do that for himself. He still felt nothing.

And Logan was feeling way too much. He took a deep breath now that the tears had been cleaned up, and he smiled down at the message Patton had sent. 

Patton clearly didn’t feel okay. Obviously, he didn’t. Logan desperately wanted him to feel okay again, but he knew that wouldn’t happen for a while.

_[I know you’re not okay right now. I just hope you will be soon. I really care about you, Patton.]_

He stared down at his text. For some strange reason, it felt emotionless. Texting had that sort of feeling. If you don’t overemphasize everything, it’s just plain words.

Logan had always felt emotionless his whole life. He’s always been called a robot. And now he’s staring down at his text that felt… empty.

Patton could never understand how much he truly felt if they were just talking with empty words. He wanted to hear Patton. But what would a phone call even do? It might make Patton overwhelmed. Hell, it would probably even make Logan overwhelmed.

Patton read through the text. He sighed. He was so _tired_ of being told that people cared. Whether it was by his closest friends or people sending him positive messages among the flood of negative ones.

For once in his life, Patton was almost sure that things wouldn’t be getting better for a long time. He didn’t know when, but he wanted it to be over with. It felt like his heart had been ripped out and stepped on. He gave Fred and George small pats on their heads before replying to Logan’s message.

_[yeah, I get it. You don’t have to keep telling me]_

Logan evaluated the message for a few seconds, not moving as he continued to re-read the message. No, Patton didn’t understand. He didn’t simply care for Patton.

He didn’t know how important he was to him.

Logan hesitated, but he felt like he needed to do it. If he didn’t, Logan knew he would regret it. He needed to get his point across to Patton. So he went to Patton’s contact and pressed call.

He held the phone up to his ear, waiting. He was scared that Patton wouldn’t even pick up at all.

As soon as his phone started ringing, Patton felt like he had a mini heart attack. He wasn’t expecting it, so of course he accidentally dropped his phone. Luckily it didn’t fall on Fred or George. That would have just made him feel even worse.

What was he supposed to do? Pick it up? Ignore it? 

_Throw it out a window??_

Patton gave himself a couple of seconds to actually breathe, and then he answered. He brought the phone close to his ear, waiting a second or two before quietly, hesitantly saying “Uh-- Logan?” He was confused as to why he would suddenly call like that.

“Patton,” He was quiet, obviously worried. Terrified, really. “I feel like…” He was clearly struggling with this, but he pushed on, “I’m not quite good at… explaining my emotions. That much is obvious.” It was evident through his voice that he was nervous. He was using contractions, his voice was slightly shaky…

“I…” He let out a shaky breath, and finally put the thoughts that had sat in the back of his mind for what felt like an eternity into coherent words.

“Since I was young, I was always encouraged to be as professional as possible. To never let my emotions show. To be smart, and practical, and… well, a robot. And I’ve always felt a connection to people, I’ve always felt things, obviously, but… for the short amount of time that I’ve known you, I feel like you’ve made me smile even more than any of my previous friends.”

Especially Roman, but Logan didn’t say that. Patton didn’t need that reminder.

“And in this past week? I’ve felt more than I ever have in my entire life. And I’ve certainly expressed myself more. The positive and the negative feelings.”

Logan was currently sitting on his bed, and he glanced around at his bland white room before his gaze landed on the window and he saw outside. Despite how cheesy it sounded, Logan couldn’t deny that the light blue sky made him think of Patton. The color just suited him.

“I don’t _just_ care about you, Patton,” He started again, “I don’t think you understand how much you mean to me. You’ve helped me… _feel_ things. You’ve helped me express emotions after years of repressing them. Despite only truly getting to know you in this past week, your never ending kindness and optimism, and your infectious smiles, as well as the… more negative emotions you’ve shown to me… Well, I guess it was like… an awakening?”

Logan started tearing up again. He couldn’t help himself, and yet he still cursed himself for it. Years of emotional conditioning don’t fade overnight.

“You mean a lot to me. And I _need_ you to be okay. If you aren’t okay, if you never feel okay again…” His voice was a little shaky, “I don’t know how I could ever forgive myself. Because I’m the one who hurt you beyond your limit. I’m sorry, and I didn’t intend to hurt you, but… that doesn’t matter. Intention doesn’t matter, because you’ve already been hurt. You’ve been hurt so, so bad. When so many terrible things have happened, I made it so much worse. And I hurt you. And I _caused_ this.”

Patton listened to each word, each and every one sinking into his mind. It seemed like they were being etched in, marked there forever. He definitely wouldn’t ever forget how shaky Logan’s voice was, or how genuinely sorry he sounded.

He’s heard it all before. How people care about him and all that. But this was different. Patton could hear it in Logan’s voice and his words. He wasn’t excusing himself, he wasn’t trying to find a way around the fact he had hurt Patton.

Unlike Roman.

He knew Logan was right. The whole reason Patton even used to keep secrets from him about how he was feeling was because he knew he was never quite good with handling stuff like that. Logan was always stiff when given hugs by anyone, he was always professional, always acting like a robot, even around his two life-long friends. And that had always seemed odd to Patton.

But now, after opening up to him in the bathroom at the party, after talking with him at the bonfire outside, after laughing with him in his living room with a brand new weasel in his arms, after climbing into his car while soaked in rain, after saying goodnight to him after he had cried in his arms twice… it was obvious how much Logan had changed.

Was that really because of him?

Logan sounded so genuine. It was hard to doubt, despite how much Patton didn’t want to believe that he could have that much of an affect on someone. How on earth could _he_ be the reason Logan’s feeling so much?

By the time Logan was finished, Patton was speechless. There was no noise coming from him, but it didn’t stop the tears from rolling down his cheeks.

But hey, he doesn’t feel empty anymore.

Logan had to take a moment, wiping at his own tears as he took a few deep breaths to calm down. He’d finally told someone about how he didn’t feel like a robot anymore. That he felt alive. And it wasn’t just someone, it was the most important person. Patton didn’t say a word, and that scared Logan. Terrified him. But he hoped with every ounce of his being that Patton understood.

He needed Patton to understand how much he meant to him. That the words he’d said today about Patton being immature and childish were false. That he’d said them out of anger and a disillusioned version of his own thoughts. Being childish was Patton’s best quality. It made him emotional. It made him more human. More than Logan, at least.

Logan hung onto the silence, desperate to hear Patton’s voice. To hear him say anything. He listened to the quiet sniffles and the sound of Patton’s breathing.

Patton really didn’t want to cry over this.

They weren’t bad tears, but he wasn’t so sure if they were good ones either. In all his years of being alive, he’s never really experienced someone just… doing that. Opening up so truthfully.

Of course Patton was still upset. Of course Logan was still at fault for hurting him. He really only broke after hearing Logan say those things to those people in the hall. And yet, Patton forgave him. He knew Logan meant what he was saying now. And Patton wouldn’t forget, but he could forgive.

He removed his glasses, taking a shaky breath as he tried to wipe away the tears falling down the side of his face.

“U-um… I don’t know what to say…” Patton managed to stutter out.

At Patton’s words, Logan let out a small laugh. It sounded somewhat sad, as a few more tears slipped out during it. Mostly he was just relieved. 

“It’s okay,” Logan said quietly, “I just-- I wanted to let you know.”


	24. Chapter 24

For the first time since he’d left school and laid down in this bed, Patton was able to let himself smile. Just a little bit. 

As if Logan didn’t make himself anymore clear. Each word he spoke had nearly blocked out a lot of Patton’s thoughts. Admittedly, he wasn’t as happy as before the incident in the hallway, but he felt a little better. 

Still, Patton had his doubts. “A-and you really mean it…?” He asked hesitantly, just wanting some confirmation.

“Of course I mean it!” Logan wiped at his eyes again, feeling a few more tears form due to the hesitant and weak sound of Patton’s voice as he had asked the question. “I’m so sorry for earlier, and… I realized now that those things that I insinuated were bad are actually the best qualities about you. How emotional you are… it's one of the things I admire most about you. I don’t know why I said what I said in such a cruel way. I don’t have an excuse. But I’m sorry, and I know that doesn’t mean much, since you’ve been hurt anyway. But-- I meant everything I said last night, today in the bathroom, and on this phone call.”

Logan _ did _ know why he had said those cruel words about Patton to those boys. Well, he knew why now, after a lot of thinking.

Repression, that was it. Embedded into him through years of conditioning, he had decided to ignore his feelings, as always, and instead he projected a warped version of his true thoughts. He had worded Patton’s best qualities in a way that made them sound bad. And…

He said he would never want to do “anything of the sort” with Patton. Well, that was a lie. He insinuated he would never date Patton, and yet that was the exact opposite of what he thought.

Patton stayed quiet for a moment. If he was being honest, he didn’t know why Logan had said what he said. Maybe it was just to try to convince those boys that the rumors weren’t true? 

“It’s okay, I forgive you…” At least now he was finally admitting that he was willing to forgive Logan. “You were right about most of the things you said anyway-- I guess I really can just be over-emotional at times…” He started mumbling towards the end, letting his words trail off.

“I-I’m sorry if I worried you,” Patton spoke up again at his own apology, “Or… I dunno, scared you. I wouldn’t ever really be  _ that _ mad at you.”

Okay, the apology was one problem. Patton shouldn’t be apologizing, he had nothing to be sorry for. First, Logan decided to deal with the fact that Patton had said he’s over-emotional.

“Well, yes. You can be over-emotional at times,” Logan said fondly, “But, like I’ve said, it's one of the best things about you. Your emotions are what helped me bring mine out of the pit they’ve forced down for years.”

“And…” He started, “Admittedly, I was scared. But it wasn’t because of you. You had every right not to reply to me, or to be distant. I was more scared that I’d never get a chance to convey to you how much you mean to me.” He trailed off at the end, getting quieter. He still wasn’t great at being completely honest with his emotions.

By this point, despite his current pessimism, Patton didn’t have any doubt that Logan was telling the truth right now.

“So um… yeah. You don’t need to apologize,” Logan muttered. Even through the phone, Patton could tell he was smiling though. At least a little bit, despite his awkwardness at the moment.

Patton knew that Logan was fine with the way he acted back in the bathroom, but he still felt a little bit guilty. It was probably just the fact that he had even gotten Logan to feel so worried in that moment that made Patton feel at least a little at fault.

“Thank you…” He spoke up quietly after another few seconds. What else was there to say? Well, except-- “You mean a lot to me, too.”

Logan’s breath caught in his throat the pure honest and sincerity in Patton’s voice. Thank god his feelings were reciprocated. At least in terms of… appreciation for the other.

As for his other feelings, Logan’s realization this morning… That was definitely not a mutual feeling.

However, it didn’t quite matter at this time. Just as long as he was able to get Patton to understand how much he cared, and as long as he was able to stay by Patton’s side and help him through this terrible time in his life, Logan was happy.

“Thank you, Patton.” He said quietly. He was thanking him for so many things. For being there for him, for forgiving him, for saying such kind things even after Logan had fucked up massively.

“No problem,” Patton responded, a small, subtle smile on his face. Everything Logan had said seemed to overpower a lot of the negative thoughts and feelings he was going through. It was just a relief to talk to him.

If Logan hadn’t bothered texting-- or even calling for that matter-- who knows what Patton would be feeling right now?

He laid back on his bed, still holding his phone close to his ear. Fred and George still moved to comfort him, laying on his chest now.

There had been a few more seconds of silence over the phone, and despite the fact that it was a comfortable silence, Logan still just wanted to talk to Patton. To hear his voice. So, he decided to move on to a less serious topic of conversation. 

“So,” He began, “Gabe isn’t doing too well at understanding how presentations work.”

It was true, Gabe literally had no clue what was going on, what slides he was reading, or even what they were doing the project on. It was worse than Logan imagined. At least Gabe was too dumb to comprehend  _ anything _ that happened around him, which included all the gossip. 

Patton hadn’t been expecting that random, sudden change in subject, but he didn’t care. He also just wanted to keep talking to Logan. Whether it be about something deep and personal, or just whatever came to mind. Talking to Logan just felt nice. Great, even.

“Well, did you expect anything different? I mean-- not to be rude, but… He’s Gabe,” Patton finally let a real, genuine smile cross his face now that the topic at hand was less serious. He pet George and Fred, which was relaxing.

“Yes, I suppose that is true…”

After a moment of contemplation, Logan decided to mention something that would probably make Patton go ballistic with excitement. “You know, there is an amazon package on my desk. I have a feeling that it is probably my frog tie.” He grinned as he awaited the response.

Patton let out a small gasp before frantically ranting, “Really? How does it look? Is it as great as you expected? I’m sure it’ll look fantastic on you! But what should you wear to go with the tie-- Oh, I’m sure you’ll figure it out. It’ll be great!”

Fred now started moving, making his way up closer to Patton’s face. He looked at Fred, Fred looked back. It was a couple seconds before Fred then bit his arm. Some things never change.

“Ow--” Patton winced at the small bite before gently lifting Fred off of him and placing him back on the bed.

“What happened?” Logan asked, instantly concerned for Patton despite it being only a small announcement of pain. He ignored the initial thought of now having actually  _ seen _ the tie yet, but that was secondary to the fact that Patton had just said “ow.”

“Nothing, Fred just being himself… again.”

As if Fred wasn’t already giving Patton enough marks on his hands and arms. What was with this creature? Did it have a thing for human flesh? This could only be the work of--

“I think he might be a vampire. There’s a lot of evidence that leads up to it--” Patton was interrupted by Fred hissing at him. “Clue number one. There’s also a chance he may be a phantom.”

Logan let out a small laugh at Patton’s vampire analogy. It suited Fred. 

Though, he still did want to bring up the thing he had been distracted from earlier, “I actually have not seen the tie yet. I am going to open the package now.” He stood and made his way to his desk, where he put his phone on speaker while he opened the package.

Patton waited excitedly. Truth be told, he was actually really eager to see how it looked on him. Which reminds him--

“Oh! Send a picture of how it looks! I can’t wait to see it.”

Although they couldn’t see each other, it wasn’t hard to tell that Patton was smiling on the other end. He felt so much better.

“Alright?” He said in response to Patton as he opened the package, taking out the tie.

He studied it. It was good quality, and thankfully the pattern wasn’t too obnoxious. He wondered why Patton wanted to see it so badly. Hadn’t he already sent a picture of it that was on the website?

Nevertheless, he took a picture of the tie and sent it to Patton.

Patton felt his phone buzz when he received the message. He clicked it, excited to see how it looked. And then he saw the image.

There was some silence for a few seconds before some quiet laughter could be heard through the phone. Logan was confused, “Why are you laughing…? Did I do something wrong?”

Patton should have known that Logan would take him literally. He should have phrased it differently. It took him a few seconds for his laughter to eventually calm down. “No, no. That isn’t what I meant when I said to send a picture!” A couple more giggles escaped him before he explained, “I meant to see how it would look with you wearing it.”

“Oh,” Logan said dumbly as his face heated up. Yes, he did do something wrong. Ugh, this was embarrassing.

Also, why was his face heating up? Just embarrassment, right? Patton just wanted to see a picture of him. That was normal, right?

Curse him and his “crush.”

“Um… I suppose,” Logan complied nervously. Normally he disliked taking pictures of himself. He didn’t necessarily hate how he looked in a mirror, but in pictures he never looked good. At least in his opinion.

He was still wearing a grey polo shirt from school today, so he switched out the black tie he was wearing for the frog one. He looked down at the tie, holding it in his hand as he smiled at it. It was strange how a single object could hold sentimental value. Especially an object so… strange. But it involved Patton, so it really shouldn’t be surprising that the stupid novelty tie now meant a lot to Logan.

He took a picture of himself with the tie on, frowning down at the image on his screen for a second before sending it anyway.

Patton waited for Logan to send the picture, already thinking about how great it must look! 

After the image was sent, well… he nearly squealed, “It looks great! Aw and look at the little frogs! They’re cute. I’m sure the rest of the class will think it looks good. If not, then at least I think it looks fantastic.”

Patton then saved the image so he could set it for Logan’s contact.

Logan’s face heated up for some inexplicable reason. It was just the tie Patton was complimenting, but Logan still blushed nevertheless. He also fidgeted with the tie as he responded, “Well, thank you, Patton. I quite enjoy the tie, as well.”

He placed his phone down his desk again, still on speaker. And then he looked down at the tie again. Honestly, he was kind of planning on either donating it or shoving it into the back of his closet after this presentation. But now, after hearing Patton’s approval of it, Logan decided he would keep it.

He would definitely wear it again. Maybe on a completely random day, one that has no meaning, but he wears it anyway. Just to see Patton smile because he’s wearing something so completely ridiculous. Or maybe he would wear it for Patton’s next birthday? Or something?

Wait, why was he planning this so extensively?

Patton showed the image to Fred and George, asking them, “Do you guys like the tie?”

_ The frogs. _

_ It haunts them. _

Both of the weasels hissed before backing away to hide somewhere under the covers.

Patton raised his eyebrows at the two for a moment before shrugging, “Hm… I’m sure they love it.” At least that’s what he wanted to believe. 

He then turned his attention back to the phone, “I was actually thinking of changing what kind of frog thing to bring. I know it's kind of last minute, but also Fred and George look like they might murder the poor thing before I even get the change to bring it to school.”

Logan nodded along as Patton spoke, “Yes, I am sure they absolutely would. They seem terrified of it.” He wanted to add on ‘for obvious reasons’ but decided against it. Patton seemed to actually like the creepy frog thing, for some reason.

“I think I may have given them a fear of frogs… It’s weird because weasels actually eat frogs.” He ignored that for now, instead bringing up the fact he wasn’t bringing Timrek anymore. 

“I’ll probably think of something later. Maybe I could still get myself some stickers.” He then had a sudden thought, “Maybe I could find the puffy ones! Or the ones that sparkle but honestly fall off pretty easily. I could get you a sticker, too. But then again I’m not sure which ones I’ll get anyway. You could have first choice.”

Logan smiled at Patton’s nonsense. Of course he’d still want the stickers. And Logan still wasn’t opposed to wearing one, just to make Patton smile.

And despite the fact he had just referred to Patton’s rambling as nonsense, he couldn’t deny that he still listened to every word. Patton just made him smile.

Patton then began to search online if there was any place that sold the puffy stickers. And it turns out Walmart had all of the kinds he wanted! The puffy ones were his favorite, but places usually ran out of them before he could find them.

But while searching, he also found some scented ones. That was confusing.

“If I got scented frog stickers, would they smell like frogs…?” Well, Patton’s never smelled a frog before, so he wouldn’t know.

Logan continued to smile at the ramblings, looking down at his phone as it sat on his desk. And then he accidentally voiced his thoughts out loud.

In a quiet, fond voice, he said, “How do you manage to be so cute…?”

As soon as he realized he said it, he sucked in his breath and held it. His eyes widened. Had he really just said that? 

_ Had he really just forgotten he was on speaker?  _

He quickly turned his phone off speaker and brought the phone back up to his ear, hoping Patton was too distracted by the stickers to notice.

And Patton  _ was _ busy with looking through the catalogs of various frog stickers, but it would be  _ really _ flipping hard to miss that.

In that moment, Patton felt his heart skip a beat. He stared down at his phone as he felt his face heat up slightly. Maybe he just… didn’t hear him right?

“What did--” Patton’s question was quickly interrupted by Fred giving him another bite on his arm. Patton gently shoved him and whined “Why do you hate me so much?” 

Based on the tone of voice, Logan could tell that that message had probably been directed at one of the weasels. People tend to speak differently toward their pets. However, that knowledge hadn’t stopped Logan from nearly dying in the millisecond he had taken to process that sentence.

Logan let a tentative smile cross his face as he let out a small sigh of relief. Patton hadn’t heard him say that… thing. Well, it was true, Patton was… cute. But Patton didn’t need to know that Logan thought that.

Patton wiped some of the spit and tiny drops of blood off his arm. Nasty. 

He turned to look at Fred, who didn’t seem to a single regret as to what he just did. Although Patton felt slightly betrayed, he could still feel the warmth of his face from Logan’s previous comment.

“I think Fred really hates me…” He chose to say, ignoring the other thing. But he was actually sad about Fred. What he did hurt him! Emotionally and physically.

Logan’s nervousness dropped, and was instantly replaced with worry for Patton. “No, I’m sure he doesn’t. He may just be getting used to his new environment. Did George ever attack you when you first got him?”

Of course, Logan couldn’t actually see what was going on, but since Patton had mentioned the biting earlier, Logan could make a pretty educated guess as to what happened.

He also realized that he let the professionalism slip from his usual speaking, which was uncommon, especially for something so trivial. Logan wasn’t even really experiencing any emotions, except…

Worry. For Patton. He did just get bit again, after all. It was a small thing, but it still made Logan worried. And also nervousness. That was mainly due to his accidental admission of his inner thoughts about Patton being cute.

“No… he was just sorta scared but other than that, George was just a little… dim.” Patton was telling the truth, but he still looked down at George and pet the top of his head. Patton then mumbled, “No offense, baby,” to George.

Well… it was true George was pretty dumb. He used to run into walls regularly.

Logan smiled as he imagined how dumb George could have been. It wasn’t very hard to believe.

Honestly, Logan would be lying if he said the weasels hadn’t, in a way, become his adopted children. He loved them with all his heart.

Patton reached his hand over to Fred, but the weasel instantly jumped off the bed and ran out the door. Patton was shocked-- and hurt. Alright, he got the hint. “I think he’d rather run a marathon than be around me.”

Ignoring Fred for now, Patton turned to George and said, “But at least I have you to make me happy.”

“Fred didn’t seem to act this way when I first got him. Maybe it would be important to take him to a vet sometime? Maybe something is wrong.” Logan decided to offer some advice. He barely knew anything about animals, but surely, even for a predator, that much biting couldn’t be normal. Especially since George seemed so calm.

The last thing Logan said sure didn’t ease Patton’s worries. Could something really be wrong with Fred? Did Patton do something wrong? Even if there was an issue, he probably couldn’t even afford to take him to a vet. How far was the nearest one by walking distance?

Ignoring his worried thoughts, Patton asked, “You really think something could be wrong with him?”

“Possibly?” Logan guessed. He wasn’t entirely sure what constant biting could mean, but it was better to get the opinion of a professional anyway. 

It’s better to avoid the risk. Speaking of which, Logan had surely taken plenty of risks in the past few days. Following Patton to the bathroom this morning. Making this call. Accidentally calling Patton  _ cute _ ?

Well, that’s not wrong, but…

“Well, what should I do?” Patton asked. He pet George’s head for comfort, trying to convince himself it was probably nothing and he shouldn’t be worried.

“I would suggest going to the vet as soon as possible. That would most likely be tomorrow with certain circumstances, and all…” Logan was referring to the fact that it had now gone dark outside, as well as Patton’s current emotional situation. Patton probably just wanted to stay at home doing nothing for the rest of the day.

Though, Patton is also the type to put the well-being of everyone and everything above his own well-being. Which included Fred.

“Okay, yeah… you’re right,” Patton said.

As if Patton didn’t have enough stuff to worry about, there was now the irrational thought that Fred was gonna die. He would need to see where the closest vet was and see if he could take a bus or something. Patton decided to push a couple of things aside for tomorrow. Right now he needed to take care of Fred.

Logan let an awkward smile cross his face at Patton’s words. Usually, he disliked being called smart or correct because it was usually laced with a hint of sarcasm. But from Patton it was different. He seemed genuine.

Now that they’ve had a very long chat, Logan decided to bring up his main reason for calling in the first place. He wanted confirmation before he hung up. He’d wait all night if he had to.

With a quiet and sincere voice, he hesitantly asked, “Are you… doing better now, Patton?”

Admittedly, it was a sudden shift in the conversation, but it was getting late, and as much as Logan hated the idea of ending this call with Patton, he needed to eventually. But still, he needed to know this. He wanted Patton to feel okay again, if not now, then eventually.

Patton stayed quiet for a bit. This whole time, he’d been so distracted with talking to Logan that he forgot why he was even sad in the first place. Then he remembered.

What he was feeling earlier was a lot worse than anything he’s ever felt before. It was a terrible experience, and he never wanted to feel that way again. So, was he better than he was before? Yes. Will he be okay tomorrow? Probably.

“Um, y-yeah. I’m good for now.”

It wasn’t a lie. Currently, he was feeling fine. But he couldn’t tell the future.

Logan could hear the sincerity in his voice. He sounded genuinely okay, or at least better. At least for now. He breathed a small sigh of relief.

“Again, I’m sorry for earlier, Patton. I’m just glad you’re doing better now.” Logan was apologizing so much, but he felt that it was necessary every time. He felt like he should do it even more, even though Patton had forgiven him.

Because he could never quite forgive himself for making Patton cry. The wonderful, bubbly, incredible, emotional, adorable Patton. He may be able to shove down his guilt, but it’s always going to be there.

“It’s fine, Logan, really. There’s no need to apologize,” Patton was quick to respond. He didn’t want to think about what happened again. Not what happened earlier, or today in general, or just this whole mess of a situation.

But his words were a bit of a lie. Logan’s words, in the moment, had literally broken him apart. He’s forgiven him now, but it doesn’t get rid of what he felt in the moment.

“Okay…” Logan muttered, still feeling guilty despite the forgiveness. But Patton didn’t hate him.

“Well,” Logan spoke up again, “I have to go now. But… I’ll be honest here, I don’t want to.”

Patton couldn’t help but smile at that last part. For some reason, it just made him… slightly more happy.

“Well, I’d be lying if I said I don’t want you to stay…” It didn’t take a genius or a mind reader to know that he was happy again. You didn’t have to see it to tell that Patton was smiling on the other end. “Goodnight, Logan.”

Logan let a small smile cross his face. There were many words you could use to describe the expression: hopeful, nervous, and slightly sad for two reasons. Firstly, Logan didn’t want to hang up. Secondly, Logan knew it was wrong to be  _ hopeful _ .

Hopeful for what? Patton only said he didn’t want Logan to leave.

Of course, Logan knew now what he'd thought internally for a while. He does love Patton. But Patton was also completely destroyed at the moment due to breaking up with Roman and everything that led up to that.

Not to mention Logan’s additions to the horrible feelings.

Logan didn’t voice any of these thoughts. He simply said, “Goodnight, Patton.” Even through a few simple words, the fondness in his voice was evident.

As much as he regretted it, he took the phone away from his ear and ended the call. He let out a small sigh, simultaneously of relief and sadness.

Today had been an emotional trip. It was exhausting for Logan, but he knew that it had been so, so much worse for Patton. And he was glad to have helped make Patton smile again. That was all that mattered.

And when Patton heard a small beep through the phone, he finally put it down. He wanted to wait until the last possible second to lower his phone, until he actually heard the beep. He liked hearing the sound of Logan’s voice.


	25. Chapter 25

Patton placed his phone on top of Fred and George’s cage, which was nearby. George was still laying down on Patton’s pillow, having moved during the end of his conversation with Logan. Fred, on the other hand…

Who knows where he could have run off to? He just randomly booked it out of the room, so Patton knew he had to go look for him. He sighed as he stood from the bed. That sneaky little rat.

Patton had to search almost every inch of the house before he eventually found Fred. The little rascal had been sleeping on top of some folded towels in a cabinet. How he got in there, Patton would never know. 

He didn’t want to risk having Fred wake up and scratch his arms, so instead he just took the top two towels with Fred on top and carried it to his room. Once there, he placed Fred in the cage, knowing damn well that Fred wouldn’t want to sleep on his bed. And he would probably scratch Patton again if Patton even tried to sleep next to him.

George was still sitting on the bed, watching as Patton placed Fred into the cage. And then Patton moved George aside so he could fix his bed.

And then he laid down. And he reached for his phone.

He was hesitant at first, for very obvious reasons. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he turned his phone on.

Everything is gonna be fine.

Eventually.

Patton laid in bed, ignored the messages, and started watching random youtube videos, George laying down right next to him to comfort him as he slowly fell asleep.

\------

As soon as Logan had hung up, he knew he regretted it. Hell, he would have stayed on that phone call all night if Patton had asked him to.

He missed hearing Patton’s voice. A thought like that would have shocked Logan even just a few days ago, but now he just felt remorse as the thought crossed his mind.

Despite knowing now just how he felt about Patton, it was still strange. Not to mention wrong. He had just hurt Patton, and although he had forgiven him, Logan still felt guilty. And Patton had just ended a relationship with Logan’s (ex) best friend. 

It was weird to admit that, even just to think it. Roman wasn’t Logan’s best friend anymore; hardly even close. He didn’t hate Roman, even despite everything that happened.. Logan knew that he was not a great person, what with how egotistical he could be, and how possessive and whatnot, but he was still good. At least a little bit. So Logan didn’t hate him, at least not completely.

However, even for the past few months, Logan had felt himself drifting to preferring the company of Virgil. And sometimes Patton, on the rare occasion that they actually interacted with one another before all of this mess. Usually Roman would always be there when he was with one of those two, though.

Logan thought all of these things as he went on autopilot for his nightly routine. Brushing his teeth, preparing a lunch for tomorrow, and finishing up any extra chores he may have postponed in his frantic desire to check up on Patton.

Eventually, he was asleep after a long struggle of thoughts that just wouldn’t leave his brain. Most of the thoughts were about Patton.

\------

Logan awoke the next morning before his alarm, shutting it off before it rang. He made his way through his routine. Showering, eating, etc. and headed out to his car to pick up Virgil.

In all honesty, Logan was excited for school. No, not for his usual reason. Now it was purely because he just wanted to see Patton again.

Stopping in front of Virgil’s house, he sent him a quick text and waited for a few minutes before Virgil eventually stepped out. Virgil then climbed in the car, sipped his coffee, and then looked at Logan with a raised eyebrow.

“You look… happier…” Virgil said with a hint of suspicion. Logan was like, genuinely smiling, which was honestly quite a strange sight to see when literally nothing was going on. Just a car ride. Not to mention all of the horrible stuff that’s happened recently. Hesitantly, Virgil asked, “Why?”

“I… I’d like to believe I’ve fixed things with Patton,” Logan admitted.

“Huh,” Virgil wanted to know what happened, but he had definitely not expected Logan to rant for the entire car ride about his conversation with Pat.

As the car ride went on, changing from the sadder side of their conversation into the better part involving the tie and the stickers, Virgil’s smirk grew more and more. During the whole conversation, Virgil could just-- he understood.

Without even realizing it, Logan had hinted at his complete desperation to make things right with Patton without outright saying it. He had also seemed excited about the stickers and whatnot. And wow, he was just so obvious. Virgil could pick up on these sorts of things.

They eventually got to the school and climbed out of the car. Logan knew he would be stared at and whispered about again today. It would probably be like that for the rest of the year. But he didn’t care about anyone else’s opinion at the moment.

And honestly, it seemed like Logan was so caught up in his thoughts, he didn’t even realize that Virgil was grinning like a madman at his realization.

Soon, they separated as usual, heading to their respective lockers.

People clearly had more gossip fodder now, as Logan heard whispering about the whole bathroom ordeal from yesterday. Hell, these crazy people now started involving Emile in this, as he heard occasional whispers of his name. Cringing at a thought that entered his mind at what they could assume, he shook his head. 

Ew.

Logan made his way through the hallway of stares and whispers, heading to his class and ignoring it all as best as he could.

He would have to wait a while to see Patton, but honestly every second would be worth it just to see-- actually _see_ \-- his smile again.

And he sat down in his first class, waiting for the beginning bell to ring. There is usually time available before class, but Logan was always there as soon as possible anyway. Usually he just enjoyed the quiet, but now he was downright grateful for it. It was a place of solitude away from all of the whispers outside of the classroom door.

\------

When Patton had woken up that morning, instant thoughts from last night had flooded his head. He smiled.

This was a good way to start the day.

Quietly, he made sure to not wake up George as he stepped out of bed and got dressed. A baby blue shirt, black jean shorts, white tennis shoes, and checkered suspenders. And when he looked in the mirror, he smiled. Things already seemed better.

He went downstairs and filled up his water bottle before grabbing his backpack and heading out. The walk today would be nice, since it was early in the morning and it just felt… nice. It was calm.

It would be bad when he got to school, but for now, the quiet walk accompanied by the chirping of nearby birds and thoughts of his phone call last night helped him calm down before he had to face the inevitable.

And he was here. 

He made his way down the hall, catching a couple of stares. It made him feel uneasy, but he tried to ignore it. Still, that little voice in the back of his head was really curious as to exactly what these people were thinking about him.

While he was walking, he was pretty caught off guard when Emile poked his shoulder. “Hiya, Pat! You seem… better?”

Patton, after his initial surprise, wasn’t too shocked by his sudden appearance. It was pretty normal by now, now that Roman wasn’t always there to stop them from talking. He nodded as a response to Emile’s greeting, “Yeah, I guess I do.”

Emile knew why he was always trying to be around Patton. There was a good pro to being friends with Remy-- he shared everything he sees online. So, Emile pretty much knew everything that everyone was saying behind Patton’s back. He just wanted to be around to help him, to comfort his best friend. He didn’t want anything like what happened yesterday to happen again.

As the two walked together, Emile had made sure to distract Patton from any stares and quiet comments they were receiving. Luckily, it was working.

Emile was completely innocent in all of this, and yet he was somehow pulled in. He didn’t mind though. Rumors never really bothered him too much. Besides, he has Remy to help him out anyway, so there wasn’t really any need to worry. 

And yeah, Emile had been roped in by association. People were now calling the both of them whores, snakes, sluts. You know, your average stuff.

And this was just because Emile was friends with Patton. He couldn’t even imagine how bad it must be for the people directly involved. Though with all the stuff he’s read, he can get an idea of it.

Meanwhile, Dee was leaning nonchalantly against a locker, Remus, as usual, by his side. They were both spinning stories of the entire Patton/Logan/Roman ordeal, and _obviously_ it was credible because Remus was there. Hah, the gullibility of the average high school student just made Dee want to laugh.

However, he shut his mouth and let a snake-like grin cross his face as he saw Patton walking by with Emile. After a quick glance at Remus and back at the group of impressionable, childlike peers in front of him, everyone began their whispering again. This time, they mainly consisted of Patton and his “new boy-toy.”

Wow, this fake version of Patton they’ve made sure is interesting.

Of course Dee knew they were all lies. It began with Roman, who came home in a rage and began explaining and exaggerating the truth to his brother, who then told Dee about Roman’s account of the information, which had to have been a little false to begin with. No way in hell would Patton actually do those things, and especially not with Logan. (It was obvious to everyone that that boy had never even thought of someone romantically, the damn robot.)

But Dee had spread the lies anyway. He took Roman’s false account of the story, which was filtered through Remus’ summary of the story, and ran with it, spreading it to _everyone_.

He was only in highschool for one more year. May as well cause some chaos while he’s here.

Emile and Patton continued to walk along, and Emile really was doing his best to distract him from any negativity and such. Everything was working out pretty well so far! Patton has mostly just been listening to whatever it was Emile had to say, so at least that meant he was doing his job right.

But sooner or later, people run out of things to say, and they have to come up with something. This was, unfortunately, one of those moments.

Emile tried to think of something relevant, giving the two a moment of silence as they walked by a large group of students.

It was at this moment that Patton had taken notice of what Emile was doing. Suddenly, Patton had snapped out of his little fake world and realized that everything was still the same. Walking past the group of students, he was able to hear the whispers. People were still running their mouths, stirring up lies. Anything to cause trouble for all of them.

Patton’s smile faded as the two passed the group. Emile was quick to catch it. “So-- uh… any plans this weekend?” He frantically tried to change the subject. Emile just wanted to get Patton’s mind off of all of this.

Patton shook his head a little. He was responding, giving Emile answers, but… it was vague. Patton was trying to ignore all of the stuff around him, but he just couldn’t.

“Hey um-- I’ll see you during lunch. Okay?” Patton spoke up. He was just going to head to the bathroom real quick to splash some water on his face and bring his spirit back up.

Emile nodded, “Oh. Alright then. You sure you’re okay to go by yourself?”

“Yup!” Patton asserted, “No worries, I’m gonna head to my class afterwards anyway. See ya then.” And then he proceeded to walk down the hall by himself.

Emile stood in the hallway, watching as Patton left. He couldn’t help but be worried, especially after what happened last time. He took a deep breath, and then headed to his own class. Maybe Emile could just talk to Remy about it.

Patton entered the bathroom, and luckily, no one else was in here. He set his backpack down by the sink before turning it on, splashing some water in his face.

In the large group of students that were surrounding Dee and Remus, one student near the back of the group spoke. She was a scrawny, short little freshman girl who, desperate to feel cool, decided to pipe up. She had heard their conversation, being on the tail end of the group and closer to Emile and Patton as they spoke.

So, she wanted to contribute to Dee and Remus’ chaos, mainly to be seen as ‘cool’ by the seniors.

When the group quieted down, she spoke up, “Patton’s heading to the bathroom! Why doesn’t someone go talk to him?”

Although some people ignored her, Remus heard. He rolled his eyes, smirked and said, “Hey, Dee. Patton’s going to the bathroom. Why don’t you follow him in there? Ask him some questions?”

The girl sounded somewhat offended as the group snickered at her expense. Remus had just stolen her idea, but hey, who the hell cares? It was funny.

“Sure,” Dee agreed nonchalantly. Honestly, he didn’t really care to. But right now, he did want to get away from the group of doting underclassmen basically begging to be involved in the conversation. Remus could deal with these annoying people.

And hey, might as well talk to Patton anyway. More chaos, right? He headed toward the bathroom, knowing it had been a good few minutes since Patton last passed by them, and so it wouldn’t seem too suspicious if he walked in.

Patton had needed to get some time to just take a deep breath and remind himself that today would be better than yesterday. He just needed to be happy. If not for him, then he could at least do it for Logan.

Yeah. Do it for Logan.

And just like that, his smile was back. It was subtle, but it was still very much real. 

So hey! That was a good idea. Whenever he felt sad, he just needed to think of something good, something that could make him happy. Right now, it was Logan.

Patton wiped away the rest of the water just as Dee entered the bathroom. Though, Patton didn’t really notice.

Dee walked over to the sink, leaning against it. “How’s it going, puff ball?” The nickname was said with a bit of sarcasm. And with that, he had Patton’s attention.

After a small pause, during which Patton flinched back at the sudden appearance of Dee, he spoke up again, “Though… that does sound like a cute, innocent nickname, huh? Innocent is apparently not the word to describe you anymore.” He said the words with a hint of pity, although it was false. Again, Dee obviously didn’t believe these things, but might as well continue what he started, huh? It was kind of fun.

Patton was definitely on edge now. He knew Dee wasn’t always the nicest, and he knew he had to be careful about what he said around him, but… what he just said.

As quick as it came, Patton’s smile had faded away again. He shrugged, trying to keep the insult from bothering him. Dee didn’t know what really happened, and Patton definitely didn’t need to explain himself.

“Whatever you’re implying, it’s not true,” He mumbled quietly. Patton obviously knew exactly what Dee meant. He picked up his backpack, ready to leave.

“Oh, but it is, isn’t it? I’ve heard from Roman,” Dee said in fake innocence.

And then Dee let out a small gasp. It was due to an idea he had just received, but he played it off as an epiphany. He knew what he was going to do. Dee had to act like he was on Patton’s side.

“Wait--” Dee spoke up, wanting to stop Patton from leaving, “That is unless… hm, I believe you _are_ more trustworthy than Roman, in most regards. You didn’t actually sleep with Logan? Then again, Logan isn’t really the type to sleep with _anyone_ , so…”

Dee was just having fun with this now. If he could convince Patton that he was on his side, when in reality he was on no side at all, who knows what the little naive boy would do.

Patton, when Dee started to sound hesitant about his initial assumption, decided to turn around. He listened to Dee talk, and when he was finished, Patton grinned, nodding, “Yeah! Exactly! Whatever Roman said was way over-dramatic.”

He was actually glad to hear that Dee didn’t believe Roman, unlike a lot of other people at this school. Then again, it’s hard to stop them, considering Roman _is_ one of the most popular people where. What a jerk.

Dee, faking his way through everything, looked surprised.

“Wow! Would you mind telling me the story? I would like to know the truth here…” Dee’s voice was laced with fake innocence, but he knew it would fool Patton. The boy was more naive than anyone in the entire school.

Honestly, Dee had no idea _why_ he was doing this. He had no motives, no reasoning, and yet, he just wanted to mess things up a little bit. For fun. Why not, right?

Patton was so relieved that someone other than a close friend was listening to him now. And it was Dee, of all people! People would actually listen to him.

He told Dee what had happened, from the project being the actual reason Logan was around, to Roman’s reaction, to the fight, and everything in between. He left out some details, like how he had a complete breakdown.

Someone was believing him. Someone that was more of an acquaintance than an actual friend was willing to listen. Patton was just so relieved.

As the story was told, Dee listened. Actually listened. He may as well know the actual events of what happened, and besides, it was pretty damn interesting. When Patton finished talking, Dee asked, “Would you like me to spread that little message around?” He let a small grin cross his face, a small glimpse of his mischievous intentions, though to Patton, it probably just looked like he was happy.

Patton was just so impressionable, it was laughable.

About to answer, Patton cut himself off. Yes, it was true people needed to know the truth. Yes, Roman probably deserved to have people know how he really acts, but it wouldn’t make Patton any better than him, would it?

“I couldn’t ask you to do that… but thanks.”

Patton’s life was already ruined at this point, it wouldn’t make him any happier to ruin someone else’s, even if it was Roman. He knew revenge wasn’t always a good solution to things.

“Well, then, I’ll try,” Dee’s smile was very insincere, yet he knew Patton bought it. He didn’t even have to try. “You can always come to me for help if you need it, Patton.”

And with that, Dee gave him a short nod and turned to leave. 

As soon as Dee had left, Patton’s smile had reappeared once more. He felt great! It was so relieving to let of that pain out, all of that guilt and shame. Maybe Dee could really do something to help!

Gosh, and here he was, thinking that Dee was just like everyone else around the school.

He walked out of the bathroom, feeling much better. Maybe he could even make it through his classes today.

\------

As soon as Dee returned to the group, making his way to stand next to Remus, he let a devilish grin spread across his face. 

He told the whole story to everyone, exactly what he had done and how naive Patton was. They were all laughing, and Remus grinned in excitement. And, not wanting everyone here to be in on it, Dee turned to Remus to whisper something to him. A plan.

They were going to make these rumors so much worse.

Just for fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> look, i love Janus and his recent character development in canon, but we wrote this back when he was relatively new and thus, he is very bad  
> chaotic neutral, that's what he is  
> Remus is just here to be chaotic in general


	26. Chapter 26

Classes passed by, a span of time that felt like an eternity as Logan felt his excitement grow.

Although he was mildly afraid of the small chance of a confrontation with Roman, as he was still going to be there at lunch, Logan hoped that Roman was smart enough to avoid making any more mistakes. He’s already basically ruined Patton’s life with these rumors.

Speaking of Patton, that was obviously the source of Logan’s excitement. After (hopefully?) fixing things a little bit yesterday, he wanted to be there for Patton. In-person this time. Logan just wanted to see him smile again.

Finally, the last class before lunch ended.

As Patton stepped out of the classroom, he was surprised to see Emile and Remy waiting for him. Aw, how sweet! Patton happily greeted the two, and they all walked to lunch together.

“So, everything going well so far?” Emile asked, standing between Remy and Patton as they walked. He wanted to make sure no one gave Patton any trouble today.

Patton nodded, surprisingly in a good mood. “Definitely!” So far, much better than yesterday, for sure. He had made up with Logan, and Dee had even agreed to help with the rumors!

As the group of three entered the cafeteria, Logan and Virgil had already been at their lunch table, talking while Logan continually glanced back at the entrance to the cafeteria. When he saw Patton enter, his face immediately lit up.

And immediately, Emile and Remy started walking toward their table, urging Patton to follow, of course. He did.

Logan didn’t see this of course, because right when he had grinned upon seeing Patton, his attention was taken away from the door by Virgil speaking up, “Dude, seriously. Is something going on?” He pretty much knew exactly what it was, anyway.

Logan had turned around to face Virgil, “What?” He blinked at Virgil, looking surprised and a tad bit guilty.

Even though he already knew what was up, Virgil was analyzing Logan’s facial expression, and could immediately tell he had guessed correctly. With a serious tone, he insisted, “I’m not dumb, Logan. You’ve been talking about Patton way more than you ever have, you’re smiling a lot more, and, weirdest of all, you’re speaking in contractions on a regular basis.”

Logan turned to face the table, purposefully avoiding eye contact with Virgil. And, maybe it was a little stupid, but Logan’s first choice was to just ignore what had just been said. He started taking out his food as a distraction, but flinched slightly when Virgil spoke up again.

“You know, it’s pretty immature to hide your feelings,” Virgil joked.

And Logan flinched even more at that. Without looking up at Virgil, he responded quietly, slightly monotone, “Not immature. Just don’t know how, okay?”

Slightly panicked, Virgil’s eyes widened. Shit, that had definitely hit a mark. “Sorry… it’s just-- here, how about we go sit with them?”

“Huh?” Logan looked up. Oh. Patton had sat on the other end of the cafeteria with Emile and Remy. Still sounding slightly monotone, he said, “I don’t… want to bother them.”

“Logan, seriously. I know you want to go talk to Patton.”

Logan turned to Virgil with a serious expression, “Yeah, but…  _ I think they know _ .” He was referring to Emile and Remy.

Virgil rolled his eyes. He reached for Logan’s food, shoved it back into his lunch box, and grabbed it. Then he stood and grabbed Logan’s hand, pulling him up, “Come on, you’re being more anxious than me.”

They made their way over to the table with Patton, Emile, and Remy.

Patton had taken the seat next to Emile, while Emile sat next to Remy. After they were all situated, Patton turned to ask Emile, “So does he just… sit there?” He was talking about Remy, who was sitting and scrolling through his phone.

Emile smiled a little and turned to Remy. “Rem, you know how to talk, right?”

Remy nodded to the question… not talking. Emile turned back to Patton, “There’s your answer.”

The two continued to talk, and, a minute or so later, Remy actually did speak up about something. “Thing one and thing two, eight o’clock.”

Patton and Emile both looked in opposite directions. Rolling his eyes, Remy's first thought was “Oh god there’s two of them.”

Virgil knew that Logan would hate him for a bit for doing this, but honestly, it didn’t matter. He snickered slightly when he saw Remy clearly whisper something and Patton and Emile instantly look in opposite, yet wrong, directions.

And although he was nervous to just suddenly drop in on someone else’s conversation and sit down at their table, Virgil was doing this just so that Logan could be near Patton. Cause it was so fucking obvious. Besides, he knew Remy and Emile didn’t really mind their presence.

So, Virgil forced a very awkward Logan to sit down next to Patton, and then Virgil sat down next to Logan.

“Hey, guys,” Virgil said, and then returned to his food as he continued to speak, “We were getting kind of bored over there alone, so why not come here, right?”

Remy gave them both a small wave. He knew who they were-- especially Logan, considering yesterday’s events-- but he didn’t really know much about either of them personally.

Emile, on the other hand, was still holding a grudge. Even though he did say he forgave Logan, he was still unsure of him. Virgil was cool, though.

And Patton had smiled when they arrived, also giving a small wave, “Hi guys!”

Upon seeing Patton’s smile, Emile reluctantly said, “Great to have you here.” Hey, if Patton was happy, Emile was willing to put up with it.

“Mhm,” Virgil mumbled absentmindedly, letting out a small, barely noticeable laugh at Logan’s discomfort. 

And he was  _ definitely _ uncomfortable. Emile was known around school as “the therapist” for how easily he was able to pick up on exactly how people felt. So, he definitely knew what was going on. And he was also known to protect his friends (specifically Patton) above all else.

So, reasonably, Logan was quite terrified.

Now that the whole seating thing was situated, Patton asked why Emile hadn’t gotten any food. So while Remy pulled out half of his lunch and slid it over to Emile (along with a caprisun, obviously), Emile explained that they usually shared a lunch because the food here sucked.

Patton had no excuse as to why he wasn’t eating, but Emile was kind enough to offer him a cookie. And yet, Patton declined. It surprised everyone at the table a little, but no one decided to question it.

When the table went slightly quiet after that, Remy broke the silence by speaking up, “Both of you-- point to where two o’clock is.”

After a shared look of confusion, Patton pointed up and Emile pointed to his left.

Remy stared at them in bewildered silence before turning to face Logan and Virgil. “Can you believe these two?”

Virgil rolled his eyes, “That’s just how Patton is. I’ve gotten so used to it by now, I barely notice anymore. Just can’t believe there’s two of ‘em.”

Logan just smiled down at their nonsense (he was basically just looking at Patton but we’ll ignore that for now--)

Even through the small bits of fun during the conversation, something still stuck out in Logan’s mind… 

Why hadn’t Patton been eating recently? It began with buying lunch only for Roman, and then Logan having to give Patton some of his apple slices last week. And now  _ Patton _ was refusing _ sweets _ ? That was just completely abnormal.

Logan ignored his questions for now, instead choosing to silently offer Patton a small container of strawberries that he had. Although Logan didn’t quite know the true reason Patton wasn’t eating, he had his suspicions, and he was worried.

Afterall, Roman had always been quite critical of Patton’s weight…

“It’s the same as a clock! Just imagine the numbers! Like-- point to six,” Remy urged Emile. Thinking for a moment, Emile decided on drawing a six in the air with his finger. Remy groaned, shoving his face into his hands, “No!”

As those two continued their conversation about this whole ordeal, Patton looked up suddenly at Logan as the strawberries came into his view. He looked back down at them. They did look good…

He turned back to Logan and gave him a small, reassuring smile, “Oh uh-- thanks, but I’m not really that hungry.” Well, he was hungry, but… Oh well, it was still a sweet gesture.

“Oh-- okay,” Although worried, his empathetic smile dropping slightly, Logan decided to pull the offering away slightly. But he hesitated.

Needing to know if his suspicions were correct, he leaned a little closer to Patton and quietly asked him, “Are you alright?”

The sentence meant a lot more than simply that. Was he okay in terms of the breakup? In terms of Logan having been a massive dumbass yesterday? In terms of Fred possibly being very ill? In terms of this whole eating ordeal? There was so much happening to Patton, and Logan was really, really worried. In a situation like this, small things seemed to build up and combine with the larger problems, creating a massive snowball effect of horrible emotions. And after all he’s been through recently, there’s no way that Patton wasn’t experiencing a ton of stress.

Patton stared at Logan for a moment. Well, was he really okay? “Uh--” He needed to think for a few seconds. He knew he couldn’t lie to him. Logan always somehow saw right through him.

Things were getting better, or at least he hoped they were. After that thing with Dee and all. He had his friends, which was really good. Roman wasn’t around, which was another good thing… 

And he was here with Logan. So to answer if he was okay-- yes, for the time being.

“Yeah… I-I’m okay right now,” Patton answered honestly. Still, he didn’t want Logan to worry, so he added, “I’ll take a strawberry if it makes you feel better.”

Logan’s smile lit up by a tiny amount when Patton said that last sentence. A big enough change in his expression to be noticeable. A small gesture of “thank you” in a way. All Logan wanted was for Patton to be okay again, even if he was fixing only the small problems bit by bit.

Even if he only ate one small thing, it would be better than starving himself, which is what Logan suspected. God, he hoped it hadn’t come to that. Patton had already gone through so much.

“Yeah, that would make me feel better. I just don’t want you to not eat, you know? I want you to be okay…” He admitted genuinely, quietly. Thankfully, the others were distracted by each other or by food.

Patton smiled up at Logan, a real smile and not one of his reassuring ones. Hearing that come from Logan really helped. And after their conversation from yesterday, it was a huge deal. It turns out, Logan’s words meant a lot to him.

“Thanks Logan… I’m sure one strawberry won’t kill me, right?” At that, Patton let a usual sunny grin cross his face. Logan’s own smile widened upon seeing the sight.

Meanwhile, Emile and Remy were still bickering over the fact Emile had no idea how time even worked. While Remy ranted, he noticed Logan and Patton had started a conversation of their own. At first, he was worried, but then he saw that Patton was smiling. So there must not be anything to worry about.

Virgil, unsurprisingly, had been inconspicuously listening to Patton and Logan’s conversation, pretending to eat. Damn, Logan was being so obvious.

Though, Patton not eating  _ was  _ very concerning, and Virgil was glad that Logan was able to get through to him. Something is better than nothing.

Virgil, like Logan, suspected Roman of causing feelings of insecurity in Patton. Except Virgil was not nearly as cautious with his conclusions. He  _ knew _ that Roman was always a little too critical of Patton’s weight, and his comments of it usually came in the form of jokes. Jokes can affect people. It was most certainly the reason for Patton’s actions now.

Shit, Roman had really fucked things up, hadn’t he?

It wasn’t much food, but Logan was the happiest person in the world right now at having seen Patton take care of himself, at least a little bit. And… Patton was smiling again. That alone was incredible.

Wow, he certainly had it bad, huh? But right now, Logan’s feelings didn’t matter. Patton seemed like he was doing better, and that was enough. So much more than enough.

Patton happily ate a strawberry. It was actually pretty good. He would continue to grab some for the rest of lunch, eating only a few. But it was better than nothing.

Patton looked back to Emile and Remy, who were now on the subject of Emile’s knowledge on other things.

“Okay-- do you put milk or cereal first?” Remy asked. Emile was silent. “Emile… what do you put first?” Quietly, Emile mumbled the word milk.

Patton gasped, facing Emile, “Okay, we can’t be friends anymore.”

Everyone reacted in their own ways to the conversation. Remy and Logan both smiled at Patton’s immediate response, meanwhile Virgil was giving a face of utter disgust at what Emile had answered, and nodded enthusiastically at Patton’s reaction.

“Anyone who puts milk before their cereal is inhuman,” Virgil said, sounding completely serious. 

After that, Remy spoke up, “So… we’re all just gonna ignore the fact that Patton immediately turned into Andy from Toy Story? Like, how when Woody’s arm got torn and Andy just dumped him. Pat did the exact same thing when Emile confessed to his sin.”

Patton couldn’t help himself from laughing at the comment. Emile thought it was funny as well, so he turned to Patton and asked with puppy dog eyes, “Wait, what? You don’t wanna play with me anymore!?”

Since the two of them had seen almost every single Disney and Pixar movie, obviously they were able to pick up on such a classic. Patton laughed again at Emile’s over-dramatic response that was in reference to the movie.

Logan, however, was confused. “What’s Toy Story? Who’s Andy? What?” He was genuinely very confused.

Basically everyone turned to face Logan, and Virgil had practically whipped his head around to look at Logan in complete shock and bewilderment, asking “ _ What? _ ”

“Okay…” Remy spoke up, pointing at Logan, “What’s wrong with this one?”

Emile was silent from shock. He was an even bigger fan of Disney and Pixar than Patton. So, Logan really wasn’t on Emile’s good side. At all.

Patton, choosing not to judge, explained, “It’s a Disney film, you don’t have to get it…”

Remy looked back at Patton, “Does he even know what Disney  _ is _ ?”

“HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW?” Emile sounded offended, though in a joking way. Seriously though, how in the hell does someone not know what Toy Story is?

“Oh come on, knock it off,” Patton chastised them, “Plenty of people haven’t seen it…?” That was a lie, and Patton knew it. The Toy Story franchise is a classic.

Now that most of the initial shock was gone, Logan explained, “Well, my parents have a very… specific preference for the type of content I watch. Back when I was a kid, they were a little more lenient, I suppose. As for Disney… I’ve only seen Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, I think.”

It was true, Logan had barely seen any Disney movies at all. Ever. His parents thought it was too childish, so he wasn’t necessarily allowed to. He just never bothered to fight it.

Emile was about to speak up again, but Patton nudged him in a gesture to shut up.

“Now that is just sad,” Remy spoke up instead, “I’m not even a big Disney fan and I’ve seen more than those two movies.”

Patton decided to change the subject, “Speaking of which-- both your guy’s names sound like the two brothers from Ratatouille.”

Remy went silent, while Emile took a few seconds to process the information. Then, he gasped. A smile slowly spread across his face. Emile turned to face Remy…

“No--” Remy tried to stop him from saying--

“Halloween.”

“No!”

“WE COULD BE A DUO!” Emile grinned, his mind going crazy with ideas.

Remy gave Patton a look like “look what you’ve done” before turning back to face Emile, responding, “I’m  _ not _ going to be a rat for Halloween!”

Patton giggled slightly before responding, “Yeah, you might as well dress like Remus for a day.” After saying it, Patton realized it sounded kind of harsh, but before he could take it back, Emile, Remy, and Virgil were all laughing and agreeing.

Logan just kind of rolled his eyes, but he was smiling nonetheless. He never expected Patton to make a joke about someone, but y’know what? It was Remus, so that was pretty fair.

Patton honestly felt a little bad for making a joke about Remus. What had caused that? Even if he didn’t like someone, he would never say anything bad about them! But Remy, Emile, and Virgil all seemed to find it funny.

_ Then again, he did have evidence as to how Remus may secretly be a rat-- _

“Oh my gosh--” Remy spoke up, wanting to add in his own joke, “What if after school, he goes to Chuck E Cheese’s and offers to fill in for the dude in the costume.”

“He doesn’t even need the costume!” Emile added.

Okay, that was actually pretty funny. Patton couldn’t stop himself from laughing at that last bit.

Logan didn’t laugh. But not because he didn’t find it funny.

Instead, he was looking down at Patton. He was laughing, and it was incredible. The quiet sort of half-giggle that Patton did where he covered his mouth with his hand. Adorable.

Logan’s expression was fond, and he only realized he was staring when Virgil poked him on the shoulder. Once he knew he had been caught, Logan tensed and let out a small gasp, turning to look at Virgil before facing the table again. Virgil had been smirking at him.

He let out a small sigh. Logan knew Virgil’s teasing would never stop. Oh well. It didn’t matter too much.

Emile looked over at Patton once the laughter had died down slightly, and said, “You have just brought upon the greatest piece of knowledge to ever exist. We gotta share this with the world.”

No, they should not. Patton was quick to reply with, “Uh… Let’s not do that? He’s friends with Dee, and Dee is a good guy.”

Remy legitimately choked on his food when he heard Patton say that. His coughing got everyone’s attention, so Emile temporarily tried to help him, but Remy got it under control. He let out another small cough before saying, “We ain’t gonna pretend like he didn’t just say what he just said!”

Virgil turned to Patton, “You understand that he’s the guy that spread most of the rumors in the first place, right? He started spreading it almost immediately after the word got out!”

Everyone was pretty dumbfounded that Patton believed Dee was a good person. He had practically tormented Virgil for years. He had posted stuff about Patton and Logan almost immediately, and Virgil had seen it. He had completely destroyed people’s reputations in the past, whether for good reason or not. Patton’s sudden trust of him made absolutely zero sense.

Virgil was about reason to go hunt down Dee and murder him. No way in hell was that snake going to get through to Patton like he had with him.

Patton was shocked to see everyone’s reaction. Emile and Remy looked concerned, Logan just looked completely confused, and Virgil looked like he was contemplating violence. Patton didn’t see what the big deal was. Yeah, Dee had a tendency to lie or spread rumors, but… Okay there is no but. At least not for right now. Dee could still turn out good. He’s already been kind enough to hear Patton out!

Patton stayed silent, feeling as though he did something wrong again. As for what Virgil had said-- well, Patton wasn’t sure who to believe. Dee seemed genuinely sorry for him! Then again… he usually lied.

“Uh…” Patton made up his mind, and apologized, “Yeah, yeah. You’re right. Sorry…” 

After a couple of seconds of uncomfortable silence, Remy decided to speak up to avoid talking about whatever it was Patton was even thinking.

“Nearly gave me a darn heart attack. I swear, I almost saw god,” Remy said dramatically. Emile glared at him slightly, telling Remy to just stop talking about it.

Logan gave Patton a reassuring smile, one to let him know it was okay. Logan knew that Patton was prone to trusting people. But people make bad judgements sometimes.

Dee was definitely one of those. It would be a huge mistake to ever trust someone like Dee.

Although Logan’s smile did make Patton feel a bit better, he couldn’t help but think he was an idiot for even believing for a second that Dee wasn’t as bad as everyone said-- no,  _ knew  _ he was.

His friends’ reactions didn’t make anything any better, though. They acted as though he was the stupidest person alive. Nevertheless, he had to ignore it for now.

Thankfully, the conversation resumed normality, shifting back to less serious topics for the last few minutes they had. And the bell finally rang.

Everyone stood up to leave, and Emile gave Patton a quick hug as he said, “See ya later, Pat!” Remy just gave a finger gun to the general group before they both walked out of the cafeteria.

Virgil also gave a quick goodbye to Patton and Logan before heading off, knowing his class was all the way on the other side of the school. He usually had to leave pretty quickly.

And so, Logan looked down at Patton, asking him, “Would you like to walk to English with me?”

Watching Virgil leave, Patton’s attention was instantly back on Logan when he spoke. Honestly, how could he ever say no to that offer? He returned the small smile that Logan was giving him, and responded, “Of course.”


	27. Chapter 27

As the pair walked out of the cafeteria together, Logan couldn’t ignore the feeling of eyes glaring on the back of his neck.

He turned, some people in the cafeteria were looking. The two of them walking together would undoubtedly fuel some of the rumors.

However, as Logan glanced around the room, he locked eyes with the person who was the source of the uneasy feeling he had had. The source of the glaring.

Roman.

Logan turned back around after letting out a small gasp. Okay, it’s fine. It doesn’t matter. Logan shook his head to banish the image from his mind. Roman, looking angry, of course, but also… just sad. This was obviously difficult for him, too, this whole breakup. But Roman had still caused it. He had done this himself.

Either way, Logan wasn’t in charge of Patton’s decisions. Patton had decided that he wanted to be around Logan.

All of this thinking left the conversation while heading to English class pretty quiet. Logan didn’t talk much, but his thoughts were expressed clearly on his face. From a bit of fear at seeing Roman, to slight sympathy (although it was stupid to feel that way) due to recognizing how Roman must feel at the moment, to determination when he told himself that it wasn’t his “fault” for being near Patton all of the time. Even if Logan gets blamed for horrible things by misguided people, he will stay. Because it’s what Patton wants.

Even with the lack of conversation, the walk to class felt… nice. They were walking close together and Logan could feel Patton’s proximity to him. Also, most of Logan’s life, he hadn’t really had any friends that he could be near, be completely silent with, and still feel comfortable.

Ever since that night at the party after the chaos had died down and they spent a few hours just talking and sometimes not talking and just… being together while in Remus’ room away from the rest of the party… Logan had felt more comfortable around Patton. Silence between them wasn’t an issue, and Logan didn’t feel pressured to fill the quietness between them. It was comfortable.

Patton seemed happy to be walking to class with Logan. Ever since this morning, he’s had hope that things would get better in no time. He hated to admit it, but he had a little hope that Dee would fix a few things. He didn’t plan on telling the others about their interaction. Not any time soon, at least.

When Logan had glanced back into the cafeteria, Patton had seen. However, he didn’t wanna seem nosy and question Logan about what made him look so worried. It was pretty obvious that something was definitely not okay. And it led Patton to think--

_ Was he doing something wrong again? _

Maybe Logan had only offered for them to walk together to be nice? Maybe he didn’t expect Patton to say yes? Well, they were going to the same place anyway…

As they walked, Patton even moved his position just a little bit to give the other some space.

Gosh, why was he even so worried about this?

Logan’s train of thought instantly stopped when Patton moved to the side slightly, putting some space between them.

What? Why? Did he do something weird? Did Patton want to talk? Shit. Logan had been so distracted by his thoughts that he hadn’t even thought that  _ Patton _ might want to talk. Patton, the most social person he has ever known. Besides maybe Roman.

Wow, Logan felt like a dumbass. What would he even talk about? All he could think about was how he loved seeing Patton smile earlier, or having Patton walk side-by-side with him, or how Virgil was teasing him earlier because he had undoubtedly figured it out, or just how adorable Patton was in general.

Not really great conversation topics.

Logan struggled, but eventually remembered what was happening tomorrow, “Are you excited for tomorrow? Have you decided whether or not you’re gonna bring Timrek?”

Even Logan was surprised he remembered the name. I mean, how could you forget? The thing was terrifying.

Patton hadn’t even realized Logan had started up a conversation at first. When he finally did, Patton looked over at him. Huh. That was a random question.

_ Wait, what? Did Logan really just use the frog’s name? _

Patton smiled a little. He couldn’t help but think it was a little funny that Logan had actually called the thing by name. He shook his head as a response to the Timrek question, but then answered the other part of the question, “I guess I’m excited, but… then again, my excitement just sorta died down.” It was true. It was probably due to what has been happening over the past week. It had only been four days since they even learned about the project, and since then…

Well, a lot can happen in four days, apparently.

Patton had no clue why Logan would just ask a question like that. Maybe Patton wasn’t doing anything wrong?

It was confusing. Was he or was he not? He didn’t know, and he couldn’t just ask. That would just be-- well, weird. Like, really really weird.

“How about you? Can’t wait to see how much everyone else will love your tie!” Patton decided to say instead of focusing on the topic of how he believed he had messed something up somehow.

Logan smiled sheepishly at the mention of the tie. Honestly, it was a bit embarrassing. Some people would probably make fun of him for it, since it is so… immature? It’s just different from what Logan normally wears. At this school, people have made fun of much more normal things than frog-covered novelty ties.

Either way, it didn’t really matter. Logan would wear it anyway.

“I’m excited. It seems this week has taken forever, and I’ll be glad to finally get this presentation done.”

There was a thought that crossed Logan’s mind, but he kept it there.

_ Ending this project would mean they aren’t in a group anymore. Would they go back to being silent in class, not talking as much as they have recently?  _

Logan doesn’t know if he’d be able to be near Patton for an entire class period and  _ not _ talk to him. He was able to do such things before, back when schoolwork was his top priority.

Patton was glad to know that Logan was just as excited as he was. He really just couldn’t wait! Maybe Patton could get Logan to wear it another day besides this one. Probably not, though. Patton knew that Logan wasn’t really used to silly things like this. Oh well, guess he’ll just have to enjoy the moment while it lasts!

“After school, I was thinking I could walk to the store and grab some of those stickers today. I  _ am _ willing to share, but then again I need a preference,” Patton explained. 

There are a lot of stickers to choose from and he knew it. Patton wanted to pick one that suited the whole group. “My favorites are the puffy ones, but you seem more like a sparkle outline kind of guy. The whole thing isn’t sparkles, just the outline of it. They’re really easy to take off, too!”

And there he goes, rambling again. About stickers of all things.

Logan really didn’t care whether not he wore the stickers. He had already decided his fate days ago when Patton first mentioned it. Logan was definitely wearing one.

Still, the way Patton was rambling on and on about something so trivial as stickers… it made Logan smile.

Patton was ridiculous, in the most adorable way. His enthusiasm was contagious. It made Logan even more excited for tomorrow. He was excited to receive a sticker and put it on without hesitation, because he knew that it would make Patton smile.

And hey, while they’re talking about it… “I could just give you a ride to the store. You really shouldn’t walk that far.” It may have only been a two mile walk, which was possible, but Logan honestly just wanted an excuse to see Patton more.

Patton smiled a little, thinking his offer was sweet. “Oh, you don’t have to do that. Besides, I’m pretty sure you have better things to do, anyway.”

He really just didn’t want to bother Logan. Besides, he figured maybe a walk like that wouldn’t hurt him too much anyway. If anything, it may be good for him.

Logan was a little upset at the declination, but accepted it anyway. He just hoped Patton’s lack of eating wouldn’t affect his walk… A two mile walk is a long distance for someone who was refusing to eat. And it was relatively warm outside, too.

Now that he’s thought about it, Logan was actually really scared to let Patton do this. What if he passed out? He’s barely eaten anything at all today. It could actually be dangerous.

After a pause, during which he was thinking through the possibility of heat exhaustion plus a lack of food, Logan said, “No, I’d like to drive you there. Or at least walk with you, if you’d prefer to walk? We could pick out the stickers together?”

He suggested it as if that would be the best thing about going together. Picking out the stickers together. Maybe that would be the best thing in Patton’s mind, which is why Logan said it. But for Logan, the best part about going would be spending more time with Patton.

Not to mention possibly keeping him from passing out--

This was really worrying.

Patton was actually a bit surprised by the fact that Logan actually seemed interested in this. As stated before, he assumed Logan probably had much better things to be doing. Patton didn’t get why-- but then Logan added that last part.

And oh boy did that get Patton to smile.

As a matter of fact, he seemed so excited that he totally dropped the question of why Logan would even want to come with. Picking out stickers would be fun!

“Alright then, that works for me! Besides, this just means I can’t accidentally get the wrong kind of stickers!” He grinned up at Logan, now excited at the idea of going shopping for something so ridiculous.

Though, just to make sure--

“You’re positive you wouldn’t rather spend your time doing something else?” He asked in a quiet, hesitant voice. Patton wouldn’t be upset if he said no.

And yet, there was no hesitation. “Absolutely positive.”

Logan smiled, probably the biggest smile he’s ever had, though still not quite grinning or beaming or seeming nearly as happy as Patton normally does. Logan’s just not used to it. Patton radiates sunshine, so what else would you expect?

Seeing Logan smile in such a way had made Patton believe that today would be even greater than he had already expected. So far, everything was going well. He got to sit with all of his friends, got to eat a few strawberries, and he’s even going to get to hang out with Logan after school! If that wasn’t fun, then he doesn’t know what is. Besides--

_ They were gonna get stickers!! _

Patton was beaming for the rest of the walk to their English class. It was only a short distance left, but Patton was able to easily ignore all of the stares and whispers around him. 

Despite his complete and utter glee, Patton couldn’t ignore the small question in the back of his mind. Why had Logan insisted on taking him? Was it just to be nice?

Logan was also ignoring the stares. But while Patton was facing forward with a happy grin on his face, Logan was continually glancing down at Patton. He looked at him probably more than he looked anywhere else for the rest of the short walk.

It was just astonishing that Logan had caused such a happy reaction through a short sentence. Two words. Saying he was happy to go with Patton to do something so small, so trivial. He had caused such a wonderful smile from such a wonderful person. Logan wanted to see it all the time.

They reached the classroom, and Logan let Patton walk inside first. They sat down in their seats, thankfully right next to each other, and Logan was still as happy as ever at having convinced Patton to let him come with.

Whether they were walking or driving, Logan was happy to be there for Patton. He was even more happy to be making Patton happy again. It was all Logan wanted.

By the time Patton had sat down in his seat, he had let his previous question fade away. Who cares why. This was going to be fun.

Mr. Torres led the class as usual. They did grammar today because Mr. Torres expected them all to have their projects done by now.

Basically, today was a free day/finish your work, you dumbass procrastinator day. Logan got out two laptops despite the fact that they had finished the project. They still had to tell Gabe which slides he was doing. He handed Patton the other one.

Patton honestly couldn’t feel anymore relieved that today was a free day. He already went through the project many times, so he wasn’t all too worried about messing anything up. Still, you couldn’t be too careful.

Patton opened up his laptop and went through the slides he was going to be reading in front of everyone. He’s already read through them a lot, though. He just didn’t have much else to do.

Eventually. Gabe got bored of Logan’s questions of whether he even knew what was going on or not. He snatched the computer and opened it to coolmathgames.

Although Logan was slightly pissed off, he ignored Gabe. He let out a small sigh, both annoyed and relieved. Annoyed at Gabe being himself and relieved that he didn’t have to deal with him anymore. If Gabe did bad on the presentation, Logan and Patton wouldn’t be penalized.

Speaking of Patton, Logan turned to look at him. He was concentrating on the screen, his eyes moving back and forth, reading the words on the slides he would be presenting. His look of concentration, much like everything else the bubbly ball of sunshine did, was adorable.

Logan had a small, fond smile on his face as he looked at Patton. His expression only dropped when he realized he had been staring. He turned back to his desk, but he had nothing to distract himself.

How did Patton manage to be so… appealing? Now that Logan was aware of his undeniable feelings, Patton seemed like a magnet, always inexplicably drawing Logan’s eyes toward him. His short stature was adorable, his freckles even more so, his blue eyes were always filled with so many beautiful emotions, it was breathtaking. His light brown hair, slightly curly, was a poof atop his head, and how did hair even add to someone’s attractiveness?

Shit, Logan was staring again.

Patton had been listening in on Logan and Gabe’s conversation as he read through the slides. If he was being honest, he thought it was kinda funny. 

Yeah, it was bad that Gabe wasn’t putting in any effort and was probably gonna fail, but like, seriously Gabe? He was constantly ignoring Logan’s questions and seeming so disinterested, and the situation was something Patton couldn’t help but find humorous.

Patton had even crackled a few giggles whenever Gabe would get on Logan’s nerves with irrelevant questions and whatnot.

Nevertheless, he tried to focus. Patton knew how important this was, and since Gabe wasn’t going to be helping them, it meant he needed to do a bit extra.

After about a minute or two of silence between Logan and Gabe, Patton glanced up to look at them. He saw Gabe on his laptop, probably playing some game. He then glanced over at Logan and-- oh.

Patton’s instant thought was that he was going something wrong, which was why Logan was looking at him. Is it possible to read incorrectly?  
Either way, he gave a small smile to the other before looking back at his screen.

When the two had made eye contact, did Logan have a small second of panic? Oh, absolutely.

Did Patton realize he was staring at him? Did he know  _ why? _

And then he saw Patton’s expression. It looked somewhat sad, and maybe a little guilty? What? Why did he look guilty?

But then he smiled. It lessened Logan’s worries slightly, and he returned the smile. But Patton’s previous expression still sat in the back of Logan’s mind.

Maybe Logan should try to avoid… doing what he was doing. He shouldn’t be staring at Patton. It would probably scare him away if Patton figured out what was going on. Logan could never handle that.

Patton still couldn’t shake the feeling he was doing something wrong. Or weird. Oh gosh-- what if it was both? Was Logan trying to point it would and he just didn’t notice?

_ Oh gosh what if the smile only made it even more weird? _

Before trying to regain his focus, Patton managed to sneak another glance at Logan from the corner of his eye. Though, he was still unable to tell if he was staring.

Trying to distract himself, Patton bit his bottom lip and fiddled with his hoodie strings. Then he got an idea. Yeah, that would probably help. He switched tabs and opened up coolmathgames.

Logan was watching Patton in his peripheral vision. He saw Patton glance back at him, and then turn back to the screen.

And then Logan’s mind went blank, for real. Did Patton just bite his lip? Why did… Was it normal to find stuff like that attractive? What the fuck…?

Logan stared down at his desk as his face heated up. His eyes were wide open, and he couldn’t look anywhere but his desk. Did people normally find stuff like that attractive? Was that weird? Logan was so confused…

Patton was, in fact, glad to have gotten his mind off of his previous question. Because he’s now playing Papa’s Bakeria and he’s gotta make sure these pies are perfect.

When he eventually did look back up, he saw Logan. He was… what in the world was he doing? Oh gosh-- is he having a stroke? His face was really red, and he just looked so confused. He looked like how a microsoft computer sounds.

“Logan? Are you okay?” Patton asked. It looked like Logan was completely lost, so Patton was ready to put his hand in front of his face and snap if he had to.

That wasn’t necessary though, because Logan looked up immediately. His face heated up more. He was caught.

“Yeah, I’m good. It’s just, um… hot in this room?” Wow, that lie sure did sound pathetic.

Patton was very quick to tell that something was wrong, and that Logan was lying to him. He didn’t say anything about it, though. If Logan wanted to keep his secrets, then that’s fine with him. It’s not Patton’s business.

Logan excused himself before Patton could even respond. He was scared of what Patton could think if he knew Logan was  _ this _ attracted to him. This was brand new to Logan. 

“I’ll just go get some water, okay? I’m fine.” Logan stood up, went to the teachers desk to ask to leave, and made his way to the door. 

It didn’t stop Patton from worrying, though. Was it that bad that Logan  _ needed _ to lie? As Patton watched Logan stand from his seat, he was about to offer assistance but Logan most definitely did not want that.

Before walking out, Logan turned and gave Patton a reassuring smile. He didn’t want him to worry.

Patton stayed quiet in his seat as he watched Logan leave. As he saw Logan smile, he decided to share one back just to show he wasn’t worried. But then again, that wouldn’t be the full truth.

He turned his gaze back to his laptop screen.

_ Oh no the pies are burnt. _

Logan headed to the water fountain, and he actually did get a drink. A bit of truth in the lie. He felt like shit for lying in the first place, but no way in hell was he going to tell Patton how he felt, at least not right now. He had just gone through a breakup. And Logan had just emotionally destroyed him the other day, so… 

Ah, who was Logan kidding. He would never tell Patton. He would never have the courage to put their entire friendship on the line like that.

Great, so not only was he feeling weird enough as it is, now his pies were burnt! Gosh darn it, why didn’t he pause the game?

Patton quietly sighed to himself before continuing to play. Hey, he might as well use something to distract himself, right? Even if it was just a game. Anything would be good enough right now.

Though, as he played, he still couldn’t get rid of that worried feeling in his gut. Maybe he just shouldn’t ask about it and leave Logan alone? Logan did seem eager to leave. Did he do something wrong?

Before Logan entered the classroom, he took a deep breath. He would not let Patton distract him like that again. This was putting their newly repaired friendship in jeopardy again.

Patton had heard the sound of Logan entering the class once more, but didn’t bother to look up from his screen. One of the reasons being he really did just think he should leave Logan alone. Another being the fact that these pies needed to be baked properly.

He did pause his game when Logan spoke up, though.

“I’m good now, I think? I just needed some water. I might be getting sick or something, I’m not sure. But It’s okay.” Now that Logan was no longer in the middle of his embarrassment, it was a bit easier to lie. Of course, he felt like shit for lying, but it was better this way. What he did was weird, so he was just saving their friendship.

Being out of Patton’s life would be severely more detrimental than shoving all of his emotions down. Logan’s already done that for years, so it’s not that difficult.

Patton looked over at Logan, giving him a small smile in return. “Yeah, I know. I believe you.”

In translation:  _ …lying ass bitch. _

And Logan could definitely hear that in Patton’s voice. Patton definitely did  _ not _ believe him.

He hunched over slightly, looking back at his desk. Logan felt so guilty for this. For lying and for his feelings in general. But he had to lie. He knew he could never tell Patton why he acted that way.

Without another word, Patton looked back at his game and continued playing. He wasn’t really trying to show that he was upset, actually he was trying to hide it as best as he could. Patton knew he shouldn’t let this bother him for too long.

Besides, why should he care, right? It’s none of his business anyway, so he should just drop it.

Any minute now, he’ll just stop letting this bother him.

About a minute before the bell rang, Logan looked up from his desk to face Patton as he asked, “Do you… still want to go shopping for stickers later?” Logan sounded hopeful, and apologetic, “I’m sorry for making things weird, I just… I really do think I’m sick.”

_ Lovesick-- _

Logan ignored that thought as soon as it came into his head. He really was so sorry for having to lie. All he wanted was to spend time with Patton.

Patton closed the laptop, knowing damn well all of his progress is now gone.

He turned his attention back to Logan and thought for a second. Yes, he was still a little irritated. But no, he wasn’t too mad to say no to sticker shopping. Besides, maybe Logan  _ is _ telling the truth. Gosh, he probably seemed like a huge jerk right now.

“Yeah…” Patton agreed, his voice softening, “Maybe while we’re there we could get you some medicine.” 

Logan smiled, relieved. He was grateful that Patton wasn’t too upset. It was obvious that Patton knew he was lying.

Though Logan did hate himself a little bit more. First he said those horrible things about Patton yesterday. Then he had been attracted(?) to Patton biting his lip, which still seemed strange to Logan. And then he had lied about it. This whole attraction to Patton was fucking with his brain. He couldn’t even think straight.

“That would be great, Thank you.” Obviously, Logan wouldn’t actually need the medicine, but he was grateful for the gesture. Logan would just make sure he paid for it so Patton wouldn’t waste his money on something that would go to waste.

The bell rang, bringing Logan’s attention to the clock, away from Patton’s eyes for once. After a split second, he looked back at Patton.

“Well, I’ll see you later. Just come stop by my car after school. I’ll be in the parking lot near the auditorium.” Still feeling awkward, Logan tried to give Patton a genuine smile.

Patton should know by now that he couldn’t stay mad at Logan even if he tried his hardest. Like, it just wasn’t possible for him to do so. Logan had a right to whatever secrets he wanted to keep, so Patton had no reason to be upset, anyway.

Besides, he was literally about to have the rest of the day to spend time with Logan  _ and _ get stickers. What more could he possibly ask for?

Patton stood up, picking up the laptop and his bag, “Alright, I’ll see you after school then.” He quickly returned the laptop before saying goodbye. And once Patton was at the door, he gave one last glance towards Logan. He tried not to make it obvious. He couldn’t wait for later!

Logan let out a small, happy sigh as he saw Patton leave. It was okay, Patton wasn’t mad anymore. Maybe.

He turned back to Gabe, poking his shoulder, “Gabe, the bell rang.”

“What?” Gabe said after finally looking away from the computer.

Logan rolled his eyes, heading toward the door, “Nevermind. Figure it out yourself.”

He walked through the hallways to his next class. And, despite the small annoyance at the end of the class, his mind was still just focused on Patton.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Logan's such a useless gay, I swear--


	28. Chapter 28

The final class of the day seemed to take an eternity to pass, but the second the final bell rang, Logan practically ran out of his classroom and to his locker. He packed everything up and made his way to his car. People were watching him, as usual, but he no longer paid any attention to them anymore. Logan barely even acknowledged them.

Logan climbed in the driver's seat of his car, waiting for Virgil and Patton.

After a minute or two, Virgil exited the building and made his way to the car, sitting down in the passenger's seat. He buckled up, but Logan didn’t immediately start the car to leave. Huh. Virgil looked up at him, confused.

“Yo, what’s the hold up?”

“I’m giving Patton a ride, as well. He needs me to take him shopping for a project.”

Virgil smirked, “Ohhh. Alright.” And then he unbuckled and opened the car door, getting up.

“What? What are you doing, Virgil?” Logan glanced around nervously, afraid something was going on that he was unaware of.

“Oh, just moving to the back so Patton can sit next to you,” Virgil’s smirk seemed to grow tenfold.

_ Shit _ . And the teasing begins. Logan groaned, letting his forehead fall onto the steering wheel. “Are you seriously doing this?”

“Yep! You’ve never had a proper crush before, might as well take advantage of it now,” Virgil teased while buckling up into one of the seats in the back of the car.

\------

When Patton walked out of his final class, he seemed really excited and happy. It wasn’t just that kind of happy when you’re super glad that school is over-- well, he is happy about that but he was mostly excited to hang out with Logan and get stickers!

He also made himself a reminder to grab some medicine for whatever sickness Logan had.

Patton had a gentle smile on his face as he walked through the halls. Mostly, he was hiding his excitement due to the fact he didn’t want anyone making any assumptions or asking why he was so happy.

And finally, he made it out of the school, not taking very long to find Logan’s car parked near the exit of the auditorium, right where he said he’d be. Patton was planning on sitting in the back, but when he got closer, he saw Virgil was already there, and it looked like Logan and Virgil’s backpacks were on the seat next to him.

Patton found that a little strange, since Virgil was always sitting up front whenever he saw them, but he didn’t question it.

He entered the car, greeting the two of them happily.

After they all greeted each other and Patton was buckled in, Logan started driving. And now that they were moving, Virgil decided to speak up, letting a small smirk cross his face, “So, Pat. Logan told me why you’re here. What project are you doing?”

Logan felt a bit of panic as Virgil asked that question. He did not want Virgil to make fun of him for wearing a sticker.

Like, hell yeah he’d do it for Patton, but that doesn’t mean he wants Virgil to know.

“Oh!” Patton eagerly answered, already sounding enthusiastic about it, “We’re just presenting a slideshow for Macbeth. I just need to grab a couple of things from the store for our group presentation. I’m trying to make it more colorful and fun! Also Logan is sick so we’re gonna get some medicine.”

Virgil nodded, immediately picking up on that last part. Sick, huh? “Mhm, sounds fun.”

Logan could see his disbelieving expression in the side mirror. Logan hadn’t even said a word and Virgil already saw through his lie. He wouldn’t be nearly as forgiving as Patton.

Except, instead of anger, Virgil would just endlessly make fun of him. Obviously.

And yet, despite how obvious it was to Virgil, Patton had now settled on the fact that Logan probably  _ was _ sick. So, while they drove to Virgil’s house, he was thinking about stuff he could get for Logan. Wait--

What kind of sickness did he even have? Oh well, surely Logan knows. Logan knows a lot of stuff so it wouldn’t be that hard to guess what kind of sickness he had.

Eventually, they made their way to Virgil’s house, where Logan dropped him off. Virgil waved goodbye, smirk evident on his face as he said in a teasing voice, “Have fuuun!”

Logan rolled his eyes, choosing to ignore Virgil. He began to drive again.

As the car rolled past, Patton waved out of the window, saying, “See ya, Virgil!” while giggling slightly at how Virgil said ‘have fun.’ He sounded like a mom that was sending her kids off to prom! Patton found it pretty funny, especially Logan’s reaction to it. Though he really didn’t get why Logan looked embarrassed.

After driving for a few more seconds, while exiting Virgil’s neighborhood, Logan asked, “So, have you looked online to know where the stickers are going to be?”

Honestly, Logan didn’t care much. If Patton had no clue where these stickers were going to be, then it meant they could wander around the store looking for a while. Which meant spending more time with Patton.

Patton didn’t respond for a few seconds, thinking about it. He knew they were at Walmart, but did he know exactly what aisle? No! Though they were probably in the arts and crafts area… 

During the few seconds of silence, Logan imagined some scenarios. He could easily picture himself caving to Patton’s begging and buying him cookies, or seeing Patton’s puppy eyes as they passed by a stuffed animal rack. Cute little scenarios like that. Wow, he was really lost in thought here.

As long as he kept his eyes on the road, his mind could wander. He was experienced enough at driving. So, he did exactly that. He had so much he wished for when it came to Patton. This was brand new to Logan.

“Uh…” When Patton spoke up, Logan’s attention was back on him. Patton continued, “I’m pretty sure they’re at Walmart? If they’re all out of stickers there, then they also have them at Target. But, Walmart is cheaper, so…”

After another second of silence, Patton remembered to ask, “Oh! And we can get medicine from Walmart, too. But what do you have again?” Logan has never even said what sickness he has.

Well, there it was. Logan tried to recall some information he had learned before. Might as well be somewhat truthful.

He had read an article on the effects of emotional stress once. He had read it due to the stress of schoolwork, but in the article, there had been a list of possible stressors, one of which was unrequited love, from what Logan could remember.

Emotional stress like that could cause symptoms similar to physical sickness, like restlessness, fatigue, and mood swings. Stress could also just lead to developing an actual sickness, anyway, usually a cold. So… why not that?

“Oh, probably just a cold or the flu. My face was heating up earlier, I feel a bit fatigued, and my throat has seemed to hurt recently.”

After all, it did hurt to keep all of the words he wanted to say inside of there.

Patton studied Logan for a moment. Like… if Logan did have either than it would probably be best if Patton wasn’t anywhere near him. But whatever, he said he would help.

“Hm… maybe we could also get some tea while we’re there. With honey. It usually helped for bad throats. Oh, and I also wouldn’t mind buying soup! And you’re also gonna need some rest so we would probably have to make this trip quick. I also think you should drink water, not ice cold, though. That would probably only make it worse, I think.”

Patton has had to deal with a cold plenty of times before, so he was already planning ahead. He hoped he had enough money for it.

Logan’s heart warmed at Patton’s concern, despite the lie that had caused it. Even if he was lying, Patton still cared. Apparently he would be there for him if Logan was actually sick.

“Thank you, Patton,” Logan looked away from the road for a second to give Patton a small smile before returning his attention in front of him.

Patton looked over at Logan and returned the smile, “It’s no problem. I’d help anytime, Logan.” It was true. He usually always pushed things aside if his friends needed something. Even if it wasn’t even that important. It was sweet, but it could also be difficult to manage sometimes.

He would obviously do the same for Logan.

After a few more seconds of comfortable silence, Patton pulled out his phone to start searching if there was anything he might have missed. After a couple of seconds, he proceeded to add, “Well, the internet says you should also try drinking Gatorade or Sprite? I’m sure the only cost like a dollar or two, so maybe we can get both. How long have you been feeling sick?”

Without thinking, Logan responded, “I think since yesterday.”

The day he fucked up and said those terrible things about Patton. The day he chased Patton and Emile into the bathroom in the small hope of fixing things and making Patton feel better. The day he comforted Patton over the phone when he was so emotionally destroyed. The day Logan realized how he felt.

Huh. He let out a small sigh, leaving his response to that simple sentence. Enough was said.

Patton quickly searched something on his phone, and then spoke up again, “Well, that makes sense since your symptoms don’t seem too bad? But it’s better to be safe than sorry so maybe I could see what else we would need!” Clearly, Patton was very serious when it came to his friends being sick.

Keep in mind, Patton had only brought thirty dollars with him. But if it meant he couldn’t buy the stickers, then Patton was perfectly fine with being frogless.

“Patton, really, it’s fine. All I need is medicine. But thank you.”

Logan knew how Patton was. He knew that Patton would willingly spend so much time and money and effort just to make him feel better, because that’s what Patton did for all of his friends.

Logan’s guilt crept back in at that thought. Logan didn’t want Patton to put effort into a lie.

“Oh no, it’s no problem, really!” Patton insisted, “I’m more than happy to help in any way I can. It’s no trouble! Besides, I’m pretty sure it’s the least I could do for you since you’re driving us to get stickers, even when you’re sick.”

He was actually very happy to help Logan. Logan has done a lot for Patton. So why not return the favor, you know?

Logan knew that when the time came, he would pay for the stuff. It would make Logan feel way too guilty to let Patton pay for medicine that was completely unnecessary. 

They made their way to the parking lot and Logan found a spot. They both got out of the car, and Logan walked around to the other side to wait for Patton before they walked across the parking lot and into the store.

As they entered the store, Logan looked around. He’s familiar with the building, since his parents forced him to do the grocery shopping every week due to their constantly busy schedules, but Logan has never even been close to the arts and crafts area. So, he didn’t know which direction to go.

“Do you know where the arts and crafts area is, Patton?” Logan turned to look down at him as he spoke.

Patton nodded, “Yeah, It’s usually by the back of the store, close to the toy aisle but also close to the cooking aisle. Some people think it’s by the school supplies aisle and I could see why, but then they just end up wasting their time searching for it--”

As Patton ranted, Logan lifted an eyebrow as he continued to listen. It was rather endearing, surprisingly. 

Ignoring that thought, Logan followed Patton as he led the way to the stickers. Eventually, they made their way to the aisle. Logan looked on the left side of the aisle while Patton searched the right.

Logan found the stickers pretty quickly. There were shiny ones (the ones that Patton predicted he would enjoy the most), the puffy ones, and the scratch n’ sniff. Which, to answer Patton’s question from days ago, do not smell like frogs. They were holding various foods such as pancakes and cookies and bacon and the smell of each one reflected the food they were holding.

As Patton searched, he couldn’t find what he was looking for. It made him a little bummed out, in all honesty, but he did find a keychain with a small, stuffed cat on it. It was a little cat, barely big enough to fit in his palm, that had a metal keychain sticking out of the top of it’s head. It was also a baby blue color. He held onto it as he continued to search.

He eventually stopped his search when Logan came up to him and held out the stickers. Patton took one glance down at the stickers that had now been passed into his hands, and let out a gasp, “Oh my gosh!”

Each type was even cooler than the last! These weren’t any boring stickers either, these were the fun ones! Patton looked back up at Logan, “How much are they?”

“Eight dollars for the puffy ones, six for the scratch n’ sniff, and three for the shiny ones.”

Logan saw Patton’s beaming, excited expression immediately drop at the mention of the price. Admittedly, it was a lot. Still, Logan reassured him, “It’s not too much, don’t worry. I don’t mind paying for it.”

Patton shook his head a little, “No, it’s okay. I can pay. I guess we can just get the shiny ones!” He sounded more optimistic near the end. As long as everyone got a sticker, who cares what they looked like? Patton still needed to have money to get stuff for Logan’s cold… or flu… whichever one it was.

As Logan walked back to the rack of stickers, placing the shiny ones back, Patton held up the little cat he had grabbed, “I found this, too!” Absentmindedly, unaware of Logan watching him with a fond expression, Patton began to move the cat’s arms a little from side to side as a distraction, a small smile on his face as he did so. 

Logan looked back at the stickers and up at Patton again. Well, he made up his mind. “Okay, go ahead and buy the shiny ones. Let’s go.”

But Logan didn’t put the other stickers back. He was still holding them as he began to walk out of the aisle.

Patton placed the small cat back down before grabbing two packs of shiny stickers (everyone in the class is gonna get one!). After that, he started to follow behind Logan. 

Logan stopped though, turning back towards Patton. Thinking back to seconds ago, the small smile and the little movements that Patton had made the small stuffed cat do, Logan spoke up, “No, go get the cat. I’ll get it for you.”

Stopping in his tracks, Patton looked up to see that Logan looked completely serious about this. “Oh… Uh, you don’t need to do that. It’s just a toy, anyway.” Besides, he didn’t even know the price, and he didn’t want Logan paying for any of the stupid stuff he had just found lying around the place.

“Patton, it makes you happy, and I want to do it. It may just be a toy, but… I guess it’s also a gift? Consider it an apology for my… recent behavior, I suppose.” Logan left it at that, not wanting to mention the specifics of yesterday, and gave Patton a smile as a sort of apology, as well as a way to reassure him that Logan did want to get him this. Surely, it won’t cost much. He walked back into the aisle and grabbed the keychain.

Patton was about to stop Logan from going back, but stayed standing in his spot. This seemed like something Logan would insist on until he caved in. Besides, chances are Logan would probably buy it for himself and then give it to Patton or something. The thought made Patton smile.

He walked back out with the keychain in one hand and two sets of stickers in the other. 

When Logan came walking back, Patton watched him hold the small, blue cat in his hands. Gosh-- Patton thought this was really sweet.

“Let’s go get that medicine, okay?” Logan’s smile was meant for reassurance. This was something Logan  _ really _ wanted to do. He really did want to gift Patton this little toy, because it made him happy.

And when Patton was happy, Logan felt like he actually made a small difference. After all the shit he’s put Patton through.

Logan speaking up brought Patton back to his thoughts. Oh right, they were on their way to go grab medicine!

But then he noticed that Logan was holding onto two packages of stickers. Besides the shiny ones, it was one of each of the other two, much more expensive types.

Oh no way.

“You know you could put the other stickers back, right?” Patton felt like he already knew what Logan was going to say.

Logan could tell by Patton’s expression that he definitely knew what he was going to say. But, with a small, playful grin, Logan said it anyway.

“Nope. Let’s go.”

Logan began walking to the pharmaceutical area, heading toward the non-prescription medicine. He looked back to make sure Patton was keeping up.

Patton really didn’t want Logan to be wasting his money on something as silly as this. Besides, all of this together was definitely going to be more than twenty dollars!

Nevertheless, Patton continued to follow along behind Logan. Maybe he could at least convince Logan to let him pay for half of the stuff? Maybe more?

When they got to the aisle with medicine, Logan picked out the cheapest liquid medicine he could find. It’s not something he really needs, so why spend too much money on it?

After picking it out, he didn’t let Patton protest. He smiled, said he found the medicine, and held onto it, trying to assure Patton that getting the cheapest one was fine. Logan had a feeling that Patton would be upset about him picking out the cheapest, which was presumably the worst.

They began walking to the register, and as they arrived, the woman behind the register looked confused at the strange assortment of items. A variety of frog stickers, a cat keychain, and medicine. Either way, she scanned the items and gave the two their total.

“$40.07, please,” She droned, sounding disinterested in her job.

Logan reached into his pocket for his wallet, ready to pay for all of it.

Simultaneously, Patton pulled out his thirty dollars, knowing full well he wasn’t about to let Logan pay for the whole thing. Besides, this was all he had, anyway--

He didn’t expect Walmart to be so expensive! Like, what were they charging for? Breathing?? Was there a standing fee??  
Logan saw Patton pull out the thirty dollars. No way was he using all of his money for this.

Of course, Logan didn’t know for sure if thirty dollars was all Patton had, but Patton would definitely be the type to pay the full price if he was going to pay at all (which, he most certainly would), so it seemed easy to conclude that those thirty dollars were all that Patton even  _ has _ to spend.

Still, Logan knew that Patton wouldn’t back down from paying. So, he suggested, “Half and half?”

Patton looked over at Logan and shrugged, “You could just pay whatever’s left. I don’t mind spending this much.”

If Patton was being honest, he had his doubts Logan was even sick right from the beginning. But he was still willing to pay for most of the stuff. He just wanted to believe him.

He really,  _ really _ wanted to believe him. So Patton convinced himself that Logan was telling the truth, despite his gut instincts.

Guess that led him here.

Logan sighed, took the thirty dollars, and used it to pay for the items. He chipped in the remaining money.

After they collected their bag and were out the door, Logan dug around in his wallet for a ten dollar bill, handing it to Patton.

“I’m not just going to let you spend your money on me. Really, you don’t need to. All of these stickers are a gift. This--” He gestured toward the ten dollar bill, “--makes it half and half, okay? Please, just… let me do something nice for you?” Logan tried to avoid eye contact, afraid of the expression he would receive.

Normally, Logan was never this pushy when it came to the things he wanted to do, but he just wanted to give Patton these stickers and the little keychain in an attempt to do something to make up for his own stupidity. It was basically nothing, but these things made Patton smile, so…

Patton didn’t say anything for a moment, knowing full well he couldn’t argue with Logan. He hoped his suspicions as to  _ why _ Logan was doing all of this were wrong.

After a short pause, Patton quietly sighed, and responded, “Alright fine, but I’ll give you some gas money.”

“Deal,” Logan reluctantly agreed, but he was grateful. Logan was just happy to get something that had made Patton smile in the middle of all of this chaos.

Speaking of which, Logan pulled the keychain out of the bag and handed it to Patton.

Patton was about to speak up again, but had immediately stopped himself at the sight of the little cat.

“Ooh--” He held it in the palm of his hand. Aw, he loved it already. The thing would definitely need a name though. Maybe Harry? Patton figured Fred and George would probably like it, or at least he hoped so.

Logan, in that moment, felt so much joy at having caused that reaction for Patton. It was such an adorable little smile on his freckled face as he admired the keychain. It wasn’t his usual sunny grin, but it was just as beautiful.

Ignoring the sudden urge to hold Patton’s hand (that would just be strange, wouldn’t it?) Logan pulled out one of the packages of shiny stickers, and opened it. He picked one of the frogs off of the page and placed it on Patton’s cheek.

When Patton felt the sticker being placed on his cheek, he looked up from the toy in his hands with a surprised expression which very quickly morphed into the grin that radiated sunshine. The exact smile that Logan had just been thinking about.

Patton loved it! He thought Logan loved it, and that made him love that Logan loved it. It was an endless cycle of happiness for Patton.

Logan, for the first time in a while since all of these issues had happened, let a smile cross his face. A genuine one. Not for reassurance or to cover up what he was feeling, but because he felt real, actual joy.

He could see and feel the happiness radiating from the ball of sunshine next to him. This would certainly make his recently-discovered romantic feelings much more complicated.

But for right now, Logan was just happy to have made Patton smile. That has been his number one goal for a while now. Especially back when he began to realize the issues in Patton’s relationship, and later, when he was helping Patton cope with the relationship slowly falling apart.

That day had certainly been a whirlwind of emotions. That day at Remus’ party. Patton had looked so distraught and had held onto Logan so desperately. It felt strange to remember the situation with such clarity. It has been less than a week since that day.

Logan shook his head and brought himself back to the present. They were at the car. Logan unlocked it, and headed to the passenger door, opening it for Patton.

Patton stepped into the car, giving Logan a small smile and a polite (and slightly embarrassed), “Thank you.” He held the small cat in his hands as he waited for Logan to walk around the car-- Gosh he loved this. He loved that Logan had bought it for him. Even though he didn’t have to.

He had suspicions as to why Logan was being generous. Maybe Logan felt guilty for lying? No, Patton didn’t want to assume and ruin things. Things were nice. He liked it like this.

Then again-- why  _ wouldn’t _ he have trust issues with people now? If you went through what he went through, it would take you a while to trust people again.

Logan, before heading around the car to get into the driver's seat, saw the small shift in Patton’s expression through the window. It was barely noticeable, but Logan saw his smile drop for a moment.

He continued his path around the car, trying to ignore his rampant thoughts. Was Patton still upset by something? Did he suspect Logan’s lie? Patton was usually perceptive of these kinds of things.

Logan sat down in the car, but didn’t start it right away. He was deep in thought.

Patton waited for Logan to start the car, but quickly realized he wasn’t going to do it right away. He stayed silent. Because he didn’t know what to say, but also because he knew that Logan appreciated silence.

Patton actually wasn’t one for silence, unless it was the comfortable type. This didn’t feel comfortable. It made him feel like he did something wrong. Like he expected Logan to start yelling. Like Roman would. It scared him.

He fiddled with the tiny cat, still not letting a single word escape.

Making up his mind, Logan let out a small sigh.

“I’m sorry, Patton. I--” He paused, “I want to be honest with you, I know you hate lying, and I feel like a piece of shit for dragging this out so long, and… and making you come all this way and I think I was compensating by buying you those things… I mean-- I did want to see you happy and they were gifts to make up for-- Ugh, yeah, I wanted to see you happy and all of that, and I--”

He stopped himself, mumbling quietly, “Shit, I’m rambling…”

After taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Logan admitted, “Sorry, I just… I’m not actually sick. I lied. I’m sorry.”

He hadn’t really looked at Patton much during his rant, just small, occasional, panic-filled glances. But now he looked like he was prepared to feel the wrath that comes from an angry Patton. Still, he deserved it.

Patton had kept his eyes on Logan throughout the whole rant. The whole time he was just wishing and hoping he would stop talking. Patton didn’t want to know the truth, he wanted to be wrong about his suspicions.

Sure, it was one lousy lie, but still. It meant a lot to Patton. He could understand why Logan was buying him things, giving him a ride home, but one thing he couldn’t understand is why Logan would lie about such a small thing. 

He’s seen how this stuff works. It starts off with a small lie, then a couple small lies, and soon enough it all becomes just one huge, big lie.

When Logan was done, Patton looked away from him. He looked more disappointed than angry.

“I know. I knew you were lying from the start,” His voice was just barely above a whisper, like he didn’t want to admit it, “I should’ve pointed it out sooner, but I guess… I guess I just wanted to believe it and trust you.”

Lying about being sick isn’t a big deal. It was a small, insignificant lie. And yet, it’s not the fact Logan had lied about being sick, it’s that Logan went through so much just to make sure his own lie fit into place. That hurt.

In a weak attempt to lighten the situation, Patton let a weak smile cross his face, a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, as he said, “…And watch your profanity.”

Ignoring Patton’s attempt at making this less serious, Logan tried to explain, “I know that you knew, I just… wanted to tell you. To admit it. I didn’t want to act like--”

Roman.

“I didn’t want to make this like all of the other situations where people have lied to you. I wanted to actually own up to it… And I know it was immature of me to lie. Honestly…”

Oh god this is a mistake. Logan prepared himself to say it anyway, “I needed to calm down, get a drink, and whatnot because… I was blushing. Because I was…” He hesitated. He… he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t admit it.

“I was looking at someone in the room. Someone I like.”

Patton thought about it. It does make sense for Logan to lie in that situation, anyone probably would do the same if they were embarrassed like that.

Gosh-- was he just being over-dramatic about the whole thing? Roman did always say that Patton could act like that over such small things. Maybe this was one of those times. Though, did he really want to believe something like that from someone like Roman?

More and more thoughts filled Patton’s head. Perhaps he was being too emotional. Maybe it wasn’t his business.

“I-I’m sorry…” Patton started. What was he apologizing for? Well, he felt like he forced Logan to tell him.

“No! Don’t be sorry, it’s okay,” Logan replied quickly.

After one quick, mildly painful glance back at Patton, Logan continued, “I’m glad to have told someone, but… I hope you respect that I don’t feel comfortable telling you who it is. I haven’t told anyone, not even Virgil.”

Logan desperately hoped that would work. If Patton could just not question this, then Logan wouldn’t feel pressured to tell Patton that he was speaking about  _ him. _

“But thank you,” Logan started again, “I really am glad to have it off my chest. I was just embarrassed because it’s a hundred percent certain that they will not return my feelings. So… I’m just keeping it a secret from everyone so that more rumors don’t spiral.” He smiled down at Patton, “We both know how well that goes.”

Patton stayed silent for a few seconds, wanting to comment on that last part, but not really knowing how.

“Well… uh, if you ever want to talk about it more, I’d be more than happy to listen. I’m sure the person you like would be lucky to have someone like you.”

It was almost surprising to hear Logan had been experiencing feelings like this and hadn’t come to Patton sooner. Patton, the greatest person when it comes to understanding feelings and emotions. 

He didn’t want to question it, though. Patton felt like he put Logan through enough just by saying anything at all.

“Of course. Thank you, Patton,” Logan smiled, though behind it there was more than just happiness.

Logan knew he was way too lucky to have someone like Patton in his life, even just as a friend. That much is even pushing it. And for Patton to show this much genuine love and respect for him even after all his fuck-ups? It was overwhelming. Logan couldn’t help his occasional bouts of self-deprivation. He didn’t deserve Patton. But that didn’t stop the warmth from flooding his chest.

The car was started and a good minute or so passed before they were out of the parking lot and on the road again. Once there, Logan asked, “So, around what time do you want to bring Fred to the vet on Saturday? I’m free all day, so any time is fine.”

Logan was more than relieved for the change of conversation. No more emotions. His area of discomfort was behind them.

Patton glanced over at Logan when he spoke up again, “Oh, you don’t have to do that…” He already knew Logan would insist, so Patton added, “You’ve already done so much for me, asking you to drive me to the vet would just be selfish.”

Now that he thought of it, Logan has done a lot for Patton. Like, a  _ lot. _ Stuff he didn’t even ask for. Logan was there when he needed him, always being as gentle and kind as he could be, and Patton always really appreciated it, obviously. 

It was more than he could ask for. Besides, the vet wasn’t too far, right? As far as he was concerned, walking would be quite easy.

Thinking about all of the good things Logan has done for him made him want to return the favor, but he didn’t know how. Logan was quite the challenge. Patton didn’t mind, though.

“If anything, I should be the one doing something for you,” Patton asserted, “You deserve it.”

“Well, then do this. Let me take you and Fred to the vet. I care about the weasels, too.”

Logan glanced away from the road for a second to give Patton a look, and although he didn’t want to admit that he loved the weasels, he felt the confession would make Patton very happy. “Besides, we did agree that we’re co-parents for them, right? Let me take care of my children, damnit.”

Despite the joking tone in Logan’s voice, Patton’s immediate response was to make a scowl (which honestly looked more like pouting) and scolded, “Watch. Your. Profanity.”

He’s had to say it twice now! Come on! People should know by now not to use such bad language around him.

“Anyway-- fine,” Patton said, “But only because you said that’s how I would be able to return the favor.”

“Sorry, sorry. Sometimes swears just slip out. At least I’m better than Virgil, right?” Logan said, and then, under his breath, he mumbled, “Definitely better than Remus, that’s for sure.”

Patton was about to agree when Logan talked about Virgil, but stopped when he mentioned Remus. Patton slightly shuddered at the mere thought.

He’s been to Roman’s house enough times to hear every single thing Remus has said. Remus has probably said even more, even worse, but Patton has heard  _ and seen _ some pretty messed up stuff.

Luckily he got distracted by Logan’s next question--

“So, I’ll just text you whenever I’m good to go, and we can meet up at your place before we go, alright?” Speaking of which, they were almost at Patton’s house.

“Oh, right. That sounds good. Hopefully Fred won’t try to kill me when I take him, though.”

“He might. He’s been acting so strange lately.”

Logan pulled up into the driveway of Patton’s house, and they both climbed out of the car. Logan’s wasn’t going inside, he just… wanted to say goodbye.

They stood in front of the car, and Logan turned to face Patton. He reached into the grocery bag in his hands and pulled out the stickers. Logan looked down at the bottle of medicine for a little bit longer than he probably should have.

Ignoring his thoughts, he handed the stickers to Patton.

His smile, his adorable curly hair and freckled face and pretty blue eyes and the bright green, shiny frog sticker on Patton’s right cheek… That image put Logan’s thoughts at bay for a while.

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow. I’m excited to present our project.”

“Yeah, me too! It’s gonna be great. Hopefully it goes well…”

They looked at each other for another second or two before Patton grinned, tucking the cat keychain under his arm in order to peel a sticker off of the front page of the previously opened package. He stood on his toes and reached up to place the sticker on Logan’s cheek, “Twins!”

His smile grew even wider, but he took a few steps away before turning back and saying, “I’ll see you tomorrow!”

The sticker on Logan’s face kinda made him look dorky, and Patton loved it. He wanted to laugh, but decided to hold back, biting his bottom lip to make sure no laughter slipped out.

He made his way to the front door, walking up the driveway and down the small path leading to the door. He gave one last glance and a wave at Logan before opening the door, walking in, and closing it.

\------

Now on his way home, Logan thought about what had just happened.

He had an idea before Patton put that sticker on his face. He had wanted to hug Patton goodbye.

And then… the sticker, the ‘Twins!’, the adorable, excited grin and the utter cuteness and kindness of the person in front of him had thrown Logan completely off guard.

He had been frozen, with a confused, yet happy expression on his face when he saw Patton hold back his laughter. Logan had been acutely aware that his mouth was hanging open slightly.

He had watched Patton head to his front door, and, finally breaking from his frozen stupor, Logan returned Patton’s small wave when he saw him turn back for a moment.

And then he was gone. Logan had lifted his hand to his cheek, feeling the sticker below his fingertips, and smiled. 

The sticker was still on his face now, and it stayed there the entire ride home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my biggest chapter yet! 6,298 words!  
> you're welcome for the giant chapter of (almost) completely fluff before it all gets so, so much worse--


	29. Chapter 29

“This is Harry. Harry Pawter,” Patton spoke down to the weasels, happily showing them the keychain that Logan had bought for him. The second Patton was back inside after Logan had left, he had bounded up the stairs and into his room, excited to put the keychain on his backpack. But not before showing the weasel babies.

Before laying down, he set up everything for tomorrow. Placing the stickers and a set of clothes next to his backpack so that he wouldn’t forget anything. It would be easy to grab and go instead of spending hours looking for them. Unless he somehow managed to forget where his backpack and clothes are… that would be a problem.

He took Fred and George out of their cage and placed them on the bed. Family cuddle time! Almost. Fred was biting again. Gosh, he really needed to be taken to the vet soon.

The movie they were watching tonight was Tangled, which Patton set up on his phone as he laid on his side, the two weasels (one with significantly more squirming and biting) resting near his chest.

It was a bit of a struggle to watch the movie, because now Fred was hissing. Now Patton had a bunch of tiny claw and bite marks on him. 

But anyway, Patton had eventually passed out during the movie, today’s events being exhausting despite how they paled in comparison to most of the other recent events in Patton’s life. Luckily, Fred had also fallen asleep, so Patton wouldn’t be too bothered as sleep eventually washed over him.

\------

When Logan had finally returned home, he went through his normal routine of putting his stuff away, cleaning his room, doing chores, etc.

And while he was brushing his teeth, he looked at himself in the mirror. He did look quite dumb with the sticker on his face, but he was smiling nonetheless. He finished up, washed off his toothbrush, and then reached up to peel the sticker off of his face.

He looked down at it for a few seconds before walking back into his bedroom. Wanting to save the sticker, he looked around the room for a place to put it.

His eyes landed on the bookshelf that stood behind his bed, reaching up to the ceiling and filled with Logan’s favorite books ranging from astrophysics textbooks to mystery, fantasy, and sci-fi novels to nonfiction books. He placed the sticker on the corner of one of the shelves, right next to the categorized section of fiction books.

Logan smiled at the sticker, and chose to pull out one of the books Patton had given him last year for his birthday, when they had only known each other for a month or so after being introduced by Roman. It definitely wasn’t the type of book Logan would normally read, being more focused on a fictional romance and regular life scenarios. Still, Logan enjoyed it the first time he read it, nearly a year ago.

There was nothing else he did the rest of the night except read that book.

After an hour or so, he placed the book back in its correctly alphabetized place in the “fiction” section of his bookshelf, and got ready for bed.

As much as he had been dreading wearing that frog tie to school for fear of mockery, he was actually somewhat excited. Just because he would get to see Patton smile again. That alone meant the world to him.

\------

The next morning, Logan awoke and quickly prepared for the day.

He ate breakfast, packed his backpack, double-checked his homework, and finally got dressed. 

He finished putting on the frog tie. Of course his slight worries were still there, but did it really matter if he was made fun of? All of the other things he could be wrongfully ridiculed for were a lot more important than any comments about a tie. Besides, their comments would mean nothing to him within a week.

Patton’s smile at seeing the tie would certainly make a significantly longer lasting impression.

Logan stepped outside and got in his car, driving toward Virgil’s house.

While Logan had a gentle smile on his face most of the morning, awaiting the moment when he could see Patton, Patton had awoken with nothing but enthusiasm and was beaming when he remembered what today would bring.

He had woken up slightly earlier than his usual time. He wasn’t even sure why, but he knew he couldn’t go back to sleep. Not a chance! Today was going to be so fun, and Patton was too excited. Nothing could hold him back, not even sleep.

Sitting up in bed, he glanced around the room with the sun gently streaming in through the window above his bed, and on the wall to the left of him. It was a sunny day, and it further solidified that today was going to be a good day. Patton’s grin grew further as he sat up from his bed and made his way across the room to the clothes he set out last night.

He had decided to dress very well (and very green) for this occasion. He wore a green t-shirt that was close to the color of a pine tree, and a brighter, more pastel green hoodie over it. He mainly wore the hoodie because it was cold in the mornings when he walked, but he could definitely tie it around his waist later to keep the green theme going! He also had khaki-colored shorts, checkered converse (with green socks peeking out slightly) and, of course, he had placed two stickers on his face. One on each cheek.

He was definitely going to save the rest for the rest of the class. He had chosen two shiny ones for himself because he didn’t want to hog the really cool ones. Even Gabe would get some, despite his constant lack of contribution to the project.

Before leaving, Patton put Fred and George back in their cage. Such good boys. Patton’s smile grew more as he looked at them, but then he turned around, grabbed his backpack, and headed out of his room and down the stairs.

He already had a feeling today would be better.

Walking out the front door, he began his walk to school.

Soon after beginning his drive, Logan was pulling up in front of Virgil’s house. And after a quick text, Virgil was heading outside and climbing into the passenger seat. He was in the highest spirits he could possess during the school week (only because it was Friday), and he sipped on his coffee as Logan started up the car again.

Finally, Virgil noticed the fact that there were small frogs on Logan’s tie. He nearly choked on his coffee, his eyes widening as he saw Logan wearing something so…  _ not _ Logan. He coughed twice to clear his throat before he put down the coffee and asked, “Dude, what’s up with the tie?”

“I got it because of the project I have with Patton,” Logan admitted. Virgil probably wouldn’t know why it involved frogs, but clarification was not what Virgil asked for in his next question.

“ _ Patton _ , huh?”

“Virgil,” Logan warned. He clearly didn’t want to deal with this right now.

Virgil smirked, “Come on, man, it’s way too fucking obvious. You can’t hide it forever.”

“Virgil, I will hide it as long as I please. Patton has too much on his plate right now with breaking up with Roman and feeling pretty fucking hopeless, I don’t need to make it worse by adding on to my previous fuck-ups with him finding out about this,” Logan’s voice was rising, sounding angry at himself for his own complicated feelings, “He will feel uncomfortable being around me because he will not reciprocate my feelings. He won’t want to be around me anymore. He would lose a boyfriend and a friend in such a short amount of time, and I will not do that to him, Virgil!”

Virgil looked stunned, processing Logan’s words and looking over at him with a guilty expression, “Okay… I get it.”

“Really?” Logan looked genuinely shocked by that. He expected Virgil to keep teasing him.

“Yeah. You’re not just afraid of the outcome, you’re afraid it’s gonna make Patton feel even worse. Although I know for a fact he would never stop being your friend, you don’t want to risk it. You also don’t want to make him feel bad. So, yeah, I get it. It’s fine. I was teasing you and I shouldn’t have done that. Take your time to tell him. It’s cool.”

The rest of the ride there was completely quiet. Both Logan and Virgil were deep in thought. Thankfully, it wasn’t an uncomfortable silence. Both of them appreciated time to think after they tell each other about their emotions, knowing full well that it was difficult for either of them to do so. It was rare for them to open up.

When they reached the school parking lot, Virgil gave Logan a hug and an apologetic smile before they headed in opposite directions.

Logan made it to his class quickly, his brain running on overdrive as he thought about everything. Too much at once.

He sat down quietly, waiting for the bell to ring. Usually there was free time, about fifteen minutes before the bell rang and you actually had to be in class. Logan was always there as early as possible, though. So he had plenty of time to think about the fact that Virgil  _ knew _ \-- genuinely knew-- now.

He found himself glancing down at the tie again from time to time.

\------

Since Patton had started his day off a little earlier, he had shown up at school a little earlier than usual. This left him some time to actually chat with people. Today, the stares seemed a little less common, and the amount of whispers Patton heard had decreased. Maybe it was a good sign? Did Dee do something, like he said he would?

Whatever the case was, Patton put it aside for now. He walked around until eventually spotting Emile. Emile was hanging around his locker with Remy. The two greeted Patton, complimenting his choice of clothes for today.

Well, sort of complimenting.

“What’s with the hoppers on your cheeks?” Emile asked, “I know for a fact it can’t be some sort of theme week. I definitely would have heard about it.”

“Just for a project, kind of an inside joke between the group,” Patton explained.

“Well, whatever it is, you look like a preppy e-boy,” Remy commented. Emile elbowed him in the ribs. “What?” Remy exclaimed, “It was meant as a good thing!”

Emile rolled his eyes, “ _ Anyway _ , ignore him. He’s usually chatty in the morning rather than lunch.

“Don’t blame me because I wake up with some nice tea and you don’t.”

The three walked through the hall together, Patton smiling at the nonsense bickering between the two boys. It was actually pretty entertaining.

Along their lockers, Dee and Remus were talking as usual. And, also just as usual but significantly more annoying, there was a mob of freshmen around them yet again. Hoping to assimilate into their small group. Hoping to be like them. It was practically laughable.

“Janus,” Remus whispered, quiet enough for only him to hear. As he said his name, he nudged Dee with his elbow, spotting Patton, Emile, and Remy walking by.

“I told you, don’t use that name in pub--” Dee cut himself off when he saw what Remus was getting his attention for. Okay, this was a little more important than the fact that Remus used his name in front of all these other people. Besides, he hadn’t said it that loud.

“Huh,” Dee said absentmindedly, thinking out his next action… “Hey, Patton! Why don’t you come over here?” Dee finally said, calling him over. His smile looked convincing. “Bring your friends too, why not?”

Patton heard his name being called and looking in the direction from where he heard it. He was actually pretty surprised to see it was Dee who was calling him over. Patton turned back to Emile and Remy, who were now glancing between each other and Dee with concerned and angry expressions. They seemed to despise the idea of going over there.

Emile wasn’t trusting of Dee in the slightest. But Patton wouldn’t actually go over there, right? They talked about this last time. Emile looked away from Remy, turning to face Patton. Wait… was he… was he actually going to go over there? Emile could tell by his expression. Patton was considering it.

“Come on, let’s see what he wants,” Patton’s smile was meant to reassure the two of them. He knew Dee was a good person, at least!

“You… you go on ahead, we’ll wait here,” Remy spoke for the two of them. They looked at each other again, sharing the same concerned expression.

Patton, after a bit of hesitation, eventually decided to head over to Dee, a polite smile on his face. He has always tried to be nice to him whenever possible, even if Dee wasn’t exactly the most likeable person. Patton looked up at Dee, asking, “What’s up?”

Emile and Remy watched from a distance. Emile looked almost… disappointed. He didn’t know what he should do. Should he go get Patton’s other friends? Should he leave? Should he get Patton and book it outta there? Right now, he just stood and watched.

Dee shrugged, “Just wanted to talk, I guess.”

Remus chipped in excitedly, “We actually kinda learned quite a bit about you in our quest to kill the rumors!” He was grinning.

Dee nodded, “Yeah, you’re actually pretty cool, Patton. We always pictured you as a naive ball of sunshine, but y’know what? We kinda wanted to invite you to a get-together we’re having on Saturday night. You can bring any of your friends, if you want.”

The polite smile on Patton’s face quickly changed into a genuine one. Almost like he was surprised these guys would want to hang out with him. If they could learn about Patton, why shouldn’t he make an effort to learn about them? It would be a good way to become friends with them!

Maybe they weren’t as bad as people thought. Everyone deserves a chance.

He opened his mouth to speak, but he very quickly stopped himself when a thought came into his head, practically slapping Patton with how quick it arrived. Oh no. He had a thing with Logan on Saturday! They were going to bring Fred to the vet! He can’t just bail, but he also can’t turn down their offer…

“I uh… you sure it has to be Saturday? I kinda made plans--” He stopped himself there. If he said he was going to be with Logan, that might just get them thinking the wrong idea again.

“Or-- I mean-- Well-- How do I put this…?” Patton continued. He was trying to come up with a good way to explain it. Maybe Logan wouldn’t mind? They could always just go on Sunday instead…

“Oh no, it’s totally cool. It’ll be at night, probably starting around 8:00 pm, so I’m sure whatever you have going on won’t interfere,” Dee assured.

“Besides, we could move it to Sunday,” Remus suggested, “We could have quite a bit of fun at my house considering my dumbass parents will be gone at church, and they’d drag Roman with them. So, empty house!”

A Sunday at Remus’ place was most definitely not something Patton would want to join. One, because being in that house just felt weird, and two-- just ew. Remus probably had Satan hidden in his closet.

“Oh, okay then. I think I can do Saturday!” Patton was actually pretty excited for this. Now he could spend time with Logan and these two!

Should he tell Logan about this? He most definitely wasn’t very fond of these two and would probably have something to say about it…

Patton’s train of thought was interrupted when he felt a hand on his shoulder. It was Emile. “I’m sure whatever you guys are talking about is absolutely fascinating, but we’re gonna be late to class.” Oh right. That was a thing. Patton looked over his shoulder and saw Remy standing next to Emile, glaring daggers at Remus and Dee.

Emile and Remy constantly just looked like a poodle with a doberman standing guard nearby at all times.

“Alright, well, we’ll see you later then, Patton?” Dee asked.

Meanwhile, Remus was mumbling something under his breath about prophecies and offerings as a freshman handed him a twinkie. Probably just to weird out said freshman. Dee rolled his eyes and focused back on Patton.

“Oh uh-- right! Definitely!” Patton nodded, smiling. Emile began to slightly nudge him to start leaving, so Patton quickly said, “See you guys later!” before Emile was practically pulling him away.

Emile and Remy lead the way away from those two, and once they were far enough, Emile asked, “What was that all about?”

Patton knew he would be able to trust Emile and Remy, so he went on to explain his thing with Dee and how they made plans for Saturday. Emile didn’t look happy at all, and neither did Remy.

“Patton! What are you thinking? Those guys!? I’m not one for name-calling, but they’re jerks!” Emile scolded. 

Remy snickered a bit at what Emile considered name-calling, but resumed a sincere tone of voice as he said, “In all seriousness though, Emile is right. I’m chill to hang out with anybody, but those guys are most definitely not on my list.”

Patton was expecting a reaction like this, so he didn’t respond. He let them talk on and on until he reached his first class. They said their usual goodbyes before Remy and Emile headed down the hall.

“What should we do?” Remy asked, “He didn’t really seem like he was going to listen to us.”

Emile thought for a moment, “Maybe not us… but…” 

Glancing over, Remy immediately knew what he was thinking. He acted dumb, rolling his eyes and asking sarcastically, “Oh, who’s it gonna be? Say it. Who’s he gonna listen to? Hmm?”

Emile grumbled under his breath, “Oh, don’t be like that, he’ll be glad we’re telling him. He should know.”

Remy nodded, “Yeah, I get it. We can let him know during lunch. I’ll do most of the talking, so don’t worry.” Emile seemed satisfied with that.

While Patton was heading to class, thinking about how this probably wasn’t a good idea, but he was willing to give them a chance, and that he was willing to give them his trust, and how even the worst people could have good inside them… Remus and Dee were still near their lockers, talking.

Remus had turned to Dee once Patton and the other two morons were out of hearing range, asking, “Okaaay… I did what you asked, but… why did we invite him again?”

“Because it will be funny, obviously.” Dee’s voice had a sharp edge to it, “He’s so dumb and naive, not like the other people he hangs out with. We’ll be able to lure him in, like we just did… and then he can liven up the party by being the focal point of all the attention. How fun would that be?”

“Ohhh yeah that makes sense,” Remus agreed.

While the freshmen were starting to disband, heading to their own classes, it left the hallway relatively quiet. There was silence in their air. It allowed a thought to pop into Remus’ head.

“Dude. What about Roman?”

“I don’t know, lock him upstairs like you usually do. He’s always too dumb to get out,” Dee said dismissively.

“No, I mean like… Patton’s gonna be there.”

“Oh, yeah. Hm. Well, as long as Roman doesn’t know, it’s not an issue, right? Just keep him away from the party. He usually doesn’t want to attend these things unless his own friends are there, so we should be good.”

Remus shrugged, “I dunno. Locking him in his room still sounds fun.”

\------

Over the next few class periods, Remus invited many people to the party. Basically, anyone who would fit into the mission that they had. Anyone who needed to let out their anger or embarrassment or anything else on some unknowing kid. People who don’t give a shit.

They don’t exactly go to the best school. There are either really nice people, the average ones, or the other end of the spectrum, those who didn’t give a shit about being nice. There weren’t many of them, but enough to justifiably have a party with only those people.

He mixed in a few average people too, those who would just mindlessly follow the crowd and play along, no matter what. They would also allow a sense of security in Patton. There are some nice people here, too! But really, they just don’t give a shit either.

As dumb and chaotic as Remus may seem, he does have a bit of a brain. Enough to concoct a plan (with Janus’ help) for his chaos.

Eventually lunch had arrived, and Remus was done with his invitations that he had texted out consistently during the day. He gave Dee a list of every person he was inviting, and Dee’s face lit up with mischievous glee.

“It’s perfect. This is going to be fun.”

As lunch approached, the guilty feeling in Patton’s gut had grown. He had a feeling that maybe this was a bad idea. But he was going to trust Dee and Remus. 

Everyone deserves a chance.


	30. Chapter 30

As he stepped out of class, Patton was immediately greeted by Emile and Remy. They seemed happier than when he last saw them, so he took it as a sign that they, thankfully, moved past the whole Dee and Remus issue.

Little did Patton know, they just didn’t want Patton to be suspicious. Patton would obviously listen to Logan, so they just needed to mention it during lunch. The group of three walked to lunch, talking casually as they did so.

Logan met up with Virgil at their usual lunch table, since they were usually there before anyone else. Once Virgil arrived at the table, he asked cautiously, “You think we should sit with Pat, Emile, and Remy again? Maybe they’ll be pissed at us?”

Logan shrugged, “I suppose we should wait for an invitation. I don’t want to intrude again… considering the last time I did it wasn’t due to very nice circumstances.”

“Yeah, that’s true. Though didn’t you two make up and go shopping?”  
“I’m not worried about Patton wanting me there. I’m worried about… Emile,” Logan shuddered slightly, “Don’t you ever feel like he can see into your soul?”

“All the time.”

At that time, the group of three entered the lunch room and took their seats at their usual spot. Remy unpacked his lunch, sharing with Emile as usual. Emile had to have his juice and lunchables for the day or no one would be happy.

“So…” Emile started, “Did you think about what we said? About the whole Dee thing?” While talking, he was struggling to take the plastic off of the lunchables, and Remy had to help him open it.

“Um… yeah, actually…” Patton said, sitting across from the two at the table. He bit the inside of his cheek.

“Well? You’re not going, right?” Remy asked. Patton didn’t answer and that made their worry heighten even more. The pair shared a glance before Remy spoke up again, firmer, “Pat, you’re not going, _right?_ ”

“Actually, I uh… I was thinking it wouldn’t be so ba--” Patton was cut off by Emile choking on a cracker once those words left Patton’s mouth.

Remy pat Emile on the back as he blurted out, “Seriously!? Are you crazy!?”

“Umm… Logan?” Virgil spoke up with a worried expression, hearing the commotion across the cafeteria.

“Yeah?” Logan looked up from his meal and saw Virgil pointing in the direction of Patton. They saw the situation. Emile choking on his food, and the yelling.

“What the hell is going on?” Virgil mumbled quietly.

Without a second of hesitation, Logan was suddenly pulled up by Virgil. He scrambled to grab his good and groaned as his wrist was pulled in an attempt to drag him over to Patton’s table yet again, “Okay, we’re doing this again. Great.”

Virgil walked up and asked Remy, “What’s going on?” He didn’t sound accusatory, but he certainly did want to know what was happening.

As Remy continued to help Emile calm down, he looked over at the two before turning to Patton to ask, “Care to tell them? Or should we?” Remy, for once, actually seemed quite serious.

Patton looked down at the table, dead silent. He didn’t want to tell them. They would definitely be very quick to tell him exactly what he’s already heard from Emile and Remy.

Deciding to speak for Patton-- since he clearly wouldn’t-- Remy admitted, “He plans on spending a night with Remus and Dee, and some of their other stupid friends.” Emile nodded to show it was true, not quite trusting his voice after all of that coughing.

Virgil instantly tensed up, wearing a strange expression that was a mix of surprise, worry, and disgust, “Um… Pat? Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

Logan just remained silent. His expression was relatively ambiguous, but mostly, he was worried.

Patton still failed to look at the other two, or anyone for that matter. He fiddled with his sleeves as he nodded his head slightly. Truth be told, something was telling him this whole idea was absolutely _terrible_. He knew it deep down, and yet, he wanted to believe that there was good in Dee and Remus.

“No offense, Pat, but this has to be the worst decision you’ve ever made,” Remy said.

As soon as Logan let out a small sigh, Virgil whipped his head around to look at him, eyes wide, already knew what Logan was going to say. Virgil knew, after years of their friendship, exactly what Logan was thinking, exactly what was going to happen. There was _no way_ he was considering this.

Logan, despite the look he was receiving and his own thoughts telling him to keep Patton the hell away from them, decided to defend Patton, “I think Patton should be able to do whatever he wants. Sure, I don’t think it’s a good idea either, but none of us have any right to stop him.”

Virgil grabbed Logan’s tie and yanked him down enough to be face to face with him, where he then glanced between Logan and Patton before frantically whispering, “Dude, seriously?”

Logan hated the idea of leaving Patton with people like Dee and Remus, but after the recent events that have happened, Logan knew the boundaries he had to keep. He couldn’t be controlling of Patton. Not after the promises he made. Not after he swore to himself to not let anyone act like Roman toward Patton again. And that included himself.

This was Patton’s choice, and he was free to make it.

Remy and Emile both looked at Logan, almost as surprised as Virgil, “I’m sorry-- Aren’t you supposed to be the smart one or something?” Remy asked, getting elbowed by Emile as a response.

Emile honestly couldn’t believe Logan would go along with this stupid idea. He was supposed to tell Patton to have some common sense, not support this!

“Remy’s not wrong though,” Emile stated, “You’re supposed to be explaining why this is a _bad_ idea! Any person could see that!”

Those words only made Patton feel even worse. To him, it felt like Emile was calling him stupid. Dumb and stupid and not smart enough to make this decision. Or any decision, really.

Suddenly, Patton stood up out of his seat, excusing himself. He kept his eyes facing the ground as he mumbled, “I’m gonna go get some water.”

Everyone went silent as they watched Patton leave the room. 

As soon as he was gone, Logan sat down, dragging Virgil with him until they were both sitting down, facing Emile and Remy.

Finally, Logan had a chance to properly explain himself, “Look, I hate it, too. I really fucking do. I’m terrified for him. Who wouldn’t be?” He began to explain, “But I… I don’t want to be a super controlling friend, and none of you should, either. He’s dealt with plenty of that from Roman for a long time. If he needs help at all, all of us should make ourselves available to him, okay? We all know where Remus lives, so all of us with a car should be able to pick him up if he feels overwhelmed. Just because we aren’t outright keeping him from the party doesn’t mean we can’t help him. Okay?”

“I still hate the thought of him going, Logan. With Dee and Remus of all people…” Virgil mumbled. They both knew how much pain those two had caused Virgil in the past.

“I know. I do too.”

Emile and Remy shared another look. They both knew Logan made a very convincing argument, but it still bothered them. Just the mere image of those two-- they just couldn’t be trusted. It’s as simple as that. Dee and Remus have done some pretty bad things, and will continue to do so.

“So… what? You just want us to step back and let this happen?” Remy questioned, crossing his arms.

Sounding a little less pissed off and a little more understanding, Emile added, “We get what you’re saying, we just-- we really don’t think this is gonna end well. For anyone.”

“We won’t just be stepping back and letting it happen,” Logan explained, “We’re giving him enough space to breathe, but we’re still nearby if he needs us. We’ll be ready if he wants to leave that party.”  
As they spoke, planning their actions, Patton had walked far down the hallway. He wasn’t going to lie and come back without water, so he was actually going to get some. As he walked, he couldn’t help but think about what his friends had said.

He’s made a lot of stupid mistakes, admittedly, but Logan _was_ actually supporting this? So maybe it wasn’t so bad? Patton was so confused and it practically gave him a headache when he tried to think about it. He used his sleeves to wipe his eyes, feeling his frustration starting to come out as tears.

Nearby, Dee was stepping out of his classroom after easily lying to his teacher that he felt overwhelmingly sick. He had stayed there during lunch, acting too lightheaded to even stand up until he “gained his strength enough to make it to the nurse”. Worked like a charm. Time to skip school.

Except… he heard crying. It was faint, sure, but it was certainly in the hallway he was in. He turned in the direction of the noise, away from the nurses office, and saw Patton.

He smirked. Time to really get on this kid’s good side.

“Patton?” Dee called from the other end of the hallway, walking toward him, “Are you okay?”

Patton heard his name being called by a familiar voice, and quickly wiped his tears before even looking in the direction. Once he was able to tear his slightly watery eyes away from the floor, Dee was already nearby, looking concerned.

“Oh… Hey, Dee,” Patton was trying his best to seem like he had everything together despite the redness in his nose and cheeks and the puffiness of his eyes, “Yeah, yeah I’m okay. What are you doing here?” He wanted to change the topic.

“I’m feeling a little bit sick right now. Got a bad headache and can barely focus. I’m going to the nurse so I can go home,” Dee’s lies sounded so natural, so real, “But-- what are you doing out here? I… I did see you crying. It’s okay, you can talk to me.”

Patton honestly felt bad for the other. Poor thing was probably suffering. Gosh darn it, why did he have to care so much about his friends?

“Oh, I uh… What? I wasn’t crying, I was just--” Patton cut himself off. He knew Dee wasn’t an idiot, it wasn’t right to treat him like one. Not only that, but he couldn’t just lie to him, not when he was feeling sick, and yet was staying here to help Patton out.

After letting out a small sigh, Patton admitted, “Yeah okay, I was crying…”

Dee faked a sympathetic expression, his eyebrows dropping and his mouth forming a slight frown at Patton’s admission, “What’s wrong?”

However, Dee quickly faked panic, backtracking, “I mean, it’s cool if you don’t want to tell me, I know we only recently started to get to know each other, but, if you’ll allow it, I want to help.”

\------

Back at the lunch table, everyone was getting a little concerned.

Virgil glanced around nervously, continually looking back at the door that Patton exited from. “You think he’s been gone a little too long? The water fountain is basically right around the corner…”

Emile and Remy both looked toward the doors, “You’re right…” Emile admitted, “Maybe we were too harsh on him?”

\------

At Dee’s frantic backtracking, Patton thought for a moment. Did he really trust Dee enough to start explaining his problem? Well, he did seem genuinely worried. Maybe he really was a nice guy. Maybe he can even help.

“Just my friends… they aren’t really being very nice right now, so I just stepped out for a moment.”

“They’re being mean to you? How so?” Dee pretended to have a realization, followed by a sad expression, “Oh… this is about me and Remus, isn’t it? Of course they don’t trust me… It was a mistake inviting you, I’m sorry. You can back out if you must. Neither of us will pressure you, Patton.”

Ah yes, the helpless role. Perfect for someone like Patton.

\------

Virgil’s eyes widened as a realization hit him, “We were definitely too harsh… _and I made it even worse…_ ” Virgil practically whispered that last part to himself, thinking about how they had practically called Patton stupid and naive right to his own face. He took in a deep breath, and turned to Logan, “You should go check on him.”  
“Why me?”

“Damn, I _also_ thought you were the smart one…” Virgil mumbled under his breath, “You’re the only one who didn’t make him feel like shit, duh.”

“Oh come on, you didn’t do tha--”

  
“Nope, we did. Don’t lie to yourself, necktie,” Virgil interrupted, before immediately pointing toward the door that Patton had gone through, “Go.”

Logan glanced between the door and Virgil once before he saw that he definitely wasn’t going to back down. So, Logan set off to find Patton and make sure he was okay.

\------

Patton was very quick to respond to Dee, hearing his sad tone of voice, “No! Of course I’d still want to hang out with you guys, I’d love to! I’m sure they’ll understand, and if not, then…” He thought to himself.

What _would_ he do if they still didn’t agree? What would _they_ do?

“Just-- don’t worry about it,” Patton settled upon saying, “I have it under control, honest. I can still make it,” He gave a reassuring smile to Dee. Patton didn’t want to just all of a sudden cancel on them, they seemed so excited when they invited him! “I’m sure they’ll get over it and see that you guys are great! They just don’t know you, is all.”

“Oh, thank you. I just hope this gets better for you. I hate that you have to choose,” Dee sighed, “How immature of them to just make assumptions about someone like that.” 

Dee was, obviously, playing into the fact that Patton had definitely had plenty of assumptions made about him in the past few days. This was just way too easy.

Patton actually couldn’t help but smile as Dee spoke. He thought it was really sweet of him to be so considerate for how he was feeling, and actually not afraid to show it!

However, Logan had just spotted Patton down the hall, near the water fountain, and…

_Oh hell no._

“Patton?” Logan walked up to them, “Oh, hello Dee.” Even though Logan had already seen him, and had sped up toward them as a result, he might as well greet Dee. As much as it disgusted him to do so.

Patton was interrupted from whatever he was about to say when he heard another all too familiar voice. Oh no. Did he come here to say he changed his mind and thought it was a stupid idea, too? Patton prepared himself for the worst. And yet…

Logan had turned away from Dee immediately after acknowledging him, before facing Patton, “We were getting worried for you. You had been gone a while… If it helps, I was able to talk them into letting you do your own thing. In case you need it, one of us can even give you a ride to the party?”

Now this had Dee genuinely shocked. _Logan_ was okay with this? Damn, was he better at lying than he thought, or was Logan just secretly a moron?

_Also why on earth was he wearing a tie that had frogs on it?_

Patton was relieved to hear what Logan had to say once he was done speaking. He was really happy to know Logan was being so helpful and supportive, as always. “Gee, thanks Logan!” Patton was really happy. This was good! Patton even wanted to hug Logan but he probably wouldn’t appreciate that too much…

“Oh, so I see Logan wasn’t the one being mean to you, huh? That’s good to know,” Dee said a little angrily. It was barely noticeable, and Patton surely didn’t pick up on it, but Logan noticed the shift in his tone, raising an eyebrow at Dee when he heard it.

Dee was pissed because Logan was the main source of Patton’s problems right now, or so it had seemed. The whole rumor situation had been a big deal. Guess the main topic at the party will have to be Roman. Oh well.

“Patton, did…” Logan started. He wanted to say ‘did you seriously open up to him?’ but he obviously couldn’t say that. After a second of contemplation, he finished his sentence, “Did they really upset you that much? They’re just worried, but they realize now that you should be able to do whatever you want. Are you okay?” He tilted his head slightly, getting ever so slightly closer to eye level with Patton. 

Patton wasn’t all too happy about Dee just flat out saying that in front of Logan, but he didn’t mention it. “Uh… yeah, I-I get it,” He told Logan, “But I’m okay now! Honest!” Of course he was okay now. Logan had made it better, like he always did. He always would.

Patton thought it was unreal how Logan could somehow make him just magically feel better. Ignoring that thought for now, his tone shifted to one of reassurance, “Everything’s okay now.” A small smile, finally, was on his face.

Logan’s worried expression dropped and was also replaced with a smile, one of relief, “Okay.”

Dee practically wanted to gag. Ew, the fucking sweetness of it all. He kept a nonchalant expression on his face anyway, “So, everything’s good?”

“I guess so,” Logan still gave Dee a slight glare, not willing to let him think he’s off the hook. The glare only lasted a moment though, before he was turning to face Patton again, “Ready to head back to lunch now?”

Oh right. They still needed to get back to the others. Hopefully they wouldn’t want to talk about this anymore. Patton knew they were just worried and cared for him, like he’s been told before, but sometimes it was just… suffocating.

“Oh-- right, yeah,” Patton looked over to Dee, saying, “Thanks, Dee, I’ll see you tomorrow. Hope you feel better!”

Dee gave a small wave before heading off in the opposite direction, and, once out of hearing range, Logan asked, “He’s sick?” 

That lie sounded awfully familiar.

“Yeah, apparently he’s going to the nurse. That’s why he was in the hall. Doesn’t really matter though, I’m sure he’ll be fine.”

Logan was extremely worried about this. But for right now, he was going to keep quiet. No one should be allowed to become Roman 2.0 and keep Patton secluded from the world. Not that any of Patton’s friends would do that, or even get anywhere close to how bad Roman had been, but Logan doesn’t want Patton to feel that way. Like they were all just as controlling as Roman had been.

The pair walked through the halls, heading toward the cafeteria where their friends awaited. 

Before entering the cafeteria, Patton stopped dead in his tracks. He was debating whether or not he should do what he was thinking of doing. 

Logan turned back to look at Patton, raising an eyebrow in confusion, but also worry. “Uh, Patton? Why did you stop walking? Are you alright?” He hoped that Patton was not still worried about the other being upset with him.

Well, it’s now or never! Besides, it wouldn’t kill him. A second passed in which the two made eye contact before Patton was giving Logan one of the sweetest hugs he could give.

“Thanks for sticking by me, Logan,” Patton mumbled into Logan’s shoulder, standing on his tip-toes in order for his head to even be that high up. His arms were wrapped tightly, and yet gently, around Logan’s torso, and he poured every ounce of gratefulness he had into the small gesture.

Logan tensed for a split second, and then, as soon as he processed what was happening, he wrapped his arms around Patton.

In that moment, Logan felt truly forgiven for the things he’s done. He’s not perfect, but he’s happy that Patton can overlook his mistakes. No matter how many there are. And Logan was glad that he’s working to fix it. To understand what he needs to do. The boundaries he needs to keep, and yet also the limits he needs to push in order to keep his promise to keep Patton safe. The promise he had made days ago in the bathroom of Roman’s house.

He just wants to give Patton the love and respect he’s always deserved, never received, and yet gave to others anyway.

“Of course. Always. It’s the least I can do for someone as incredible as you, Patton,” Logan had a sincere smile, even though Patton couldn’t see it. It was genuine, and it was what Logan felt, so he just couldn’t help it. Patton meant too much to him now. There’s no way he could ever express it in words.

At Logan’s words, Patton couldn’t help but smile. He felt so grateful to have someone like Logan around when things got bad. Or actually-- he was just glad to have him around even when things weren’t bad. Logan was just someone Patton… trusted. He was real, and he was flawed, but he never did anything bad on purpose. And when he did mess up, he apologized. Unlike _someone else._

Patton was just so glad to have him.

It took Patton a moment to realize that they had been hugging for a bit too long, so he chuckled nervously and said “Sorry…” before unwrapping his arms, stepping back slightly and lowering himself down from his tip-toes.

“Ah, yeah--” Logan backed up a little, smiling nervously. They looked at each other for another second or so before Logan said, “Let’s go back to the others now.”

As they approached the table, Virgil called out, “Logan! What took so long?”

Logan glanced down at Patton, silently asking if he should tell them specifically who it was they were talking to. Would they get even more angry? Hopefully not, considering Logan just talked some common sense into the three.

After they shared their initial glance, Patton still had no clue what Logan was going to say. It scared him. He really wasn’t one for lying, but then again, he was really worried about what his friends would say. Would they judge him even more? 

Patton fiddled with the sleeves of his hoodie, staying silent.

And of course Logan saw how nervous Patton looked. Logan really didn’t want to lie on his behalf, but he certainly didn’t want to make this whole situation even worse.

“We just bumped into someone. They were feeling sick and Patton talked to them for a bit. It’s fine.” A half-truth. Good enough. Hopefully.

Virgil caught on to Logan’s worry, and knew that this person had to be one of two people. No way in hell would he bring it up, though.

Patton knew exactly what Logan was doing. He appreciated the thought but it still wasn’t the whole truth. It wasn’t a lie, but still made him feel bad. Patton had a feeling they were probably smart enough to figure it out though. Well, at least Remy and Virgil. Emile wasn’t really the sharpest tool in the shed.

Still, the pair sat down where they were before, sitting next to Virgil and across from Emile and Remy. Once they were seated, Emile slid over his lunchables candy to Patton. It was a crunch bar. 

And although Patton knew he wasn’t going to eat it, he smiled gratefully at Emile, saying, “Thanks,” before putting the candy in his pocket. “I’ll save it for later.”

The table was uncomfortably silent after that, everyone on edge after the emotionally-charged conversation from earlier. Trying to take everyone’s mind off the negative subject, Virgil decided to point out something that Patton had most likely missed in the chaos that had happened today.

“Hey, Pat. Have you noticed Logan’s tie?”

Once he spoke up, Patton's immediate response was to look over at what Virgil was referring to. Oh goodness. How has he not noticed until now!? Of course, he looked just as good as he did in the pictures!

Remy snickered, “What’s with the dumb tie?”

Patton’s attention was drawn away from Logan when Remy spoke. He responded, “I suggested frogs.”

“Frogs…” Remy was trying to come up with a compliment, especially since Patton looked ecstatic at the weird accessory, “Really suit you?”

Yeah that didn’t sound genuine. Remy got elbowed by Emile, of course.

Patton turned back to face Logan and smiled, “Well, I think it looks fantastic! Or should I say-- _frog_ tastic.”

Emile laughed, Remy and Virgil groaned, obviously.

“Oh just stop right there,” Remy complained.

“I mean--” Oh god Logan hated himself for what he was about to do, “ _Toad-_ ay is the day of our presentation. Might as well make an un _frog_ ettable impression.”

Virgil’s jaw literally dropped, “No fucking way.”

Remy groaned, dropping his head onto the table, Emile patted his head to comfort him, whispering that it will all be over soon, and Patton had immediately gained the biggest grin he had ever had in his life. His face practically lit up with joy when he heard the glorious puns. He clapped his hands happily, giggling at how good those were compared to his own.

A small smile forced its way onto Logan’s face at the sight of Patton’s expression. Who couldn’t smile at such a perfect, wonderful view?

“Logan… made a pun. _Two_ puns,” Virgil acted terrified, despite his genuine surprise, “Jesus Christ, the rapture is upon us, it’s time to go. I knew it was coming soon, goddammit.”

“Virgil, the world is not ending…” Well, shit. Logan cursed his brain because another pun has now entered his mind against his will. Curse this disgrace on the English language and the fact that it makes Patton smile.

After a small pause, Logan said, “The world isn’t ending. Either you’re exaggerating or you’re just telling am- _fib_ -ians.”

“Noooo!” Virgil groaned, “WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?”

Patton let out more giggles at Logan’s jokes. These were like comedy gold! Or comedy toad--

“Aw, why so _unhoppy_ , Virgil?” Patton couldn’t help but laugh at his own joke, letting out even more giggles.

Fed up with all of this, Remy lifted his head from the table slightly to glare at Logan and Patton, threatening, “I promise I will personally jump straight off the school’s roof and come back to haunt both of you.”

There was silence for a second. Another second. And then, quietly, Patton asked, “Jump? Don’t you mean… _hop?_ ”

Remy immediately stood up. “That’s it!” He looked down at Emile, “I’m leaving and I’m taking you with me, you bug.” He paused for a moment… “No pun intended.”

Emile whispered, “It totally was.”

The entire time Patton was laughing along to his own jokes, Logan was practically dying. He was dying. This is what death felt like, right? It was just-- the complete and utter joy on Patton’s face. No matter how dumb these jokes may be, Logan did something good by doing this. Patton was happy. No Roman, no Dee, just his friends and some stupid jokes.

Speaking of dying, Logan let out an actual laugh when Patton suggested the word hop as a replacement for jump. What can he say? The comedic timing was good.

“It was definitely intended, Remy, and you absolutely cannot convince any of us otherwise,” Virgil accused.

“Oh, give him a break,” Emile spoke up, “Remy’s just mad because he thinks you all need to tad- _pull_ yourselves together!”

“Okay, that’s it--” Remy finally stepped away from his seat and began trying to lift Emile up to carry him away from these imbeciles. Emile screeched as he did so, and Patton just laughed at the scene. Remy looked Patton dead in the eye as he continued to struggle with Emile, threatening, “Don’t be laughing too soon, you’re next, you clown.”

“HE’S GONNA MAKE ME _CROAK!_ ” Emile yelled through his own laughter, not stopping despite the fact that Remy was about to drag him away.

And Patton was really happy. He was smiling and laughing as though he had nothing to worry about. Like how he used to be with his friends. It was refreshing.

Virgil, also having to deal with this bullshit that _Logan for some reason joined in on what the hell--_

Anyway, Virgil said, “You know what? I’m done. I’m fucking done. The bell’s ringing soon, and I’m not dealing with anymore of this frog bullshit.”

As Virgil was on his way out, Logan called to him, “Oh, you’ll _frog-_ ive us eventually.” Logan definitely hated himself at this moment for all of those horrible, horrible puns, and yet, Patton’s smile seemed to make his complete and utter loss of self-respect and dignity worth it.

Virgil groaned even louder, and put up his hands in surrender as he walked out of the room. He was completely done with all of this, still walking, far, _far_ away from these morons.

Patton wanted to speak out about Virgil’s profanity, but Logan’s pun distracted him. Oh well, Patton could let it pass this time, only because it would seem dumb to say anything about it now. Still, he didn’t appreciate it and would definitely talk to Virgil about it later.

Now that Virgil was gone, Remy stopped his struggle with Emile temporarily to point at Patton and declared, “I blame you for this!”

Patton shrugged, “I don’t blame you for blaming me.” And yet, he still had a beaming smile on his face. 

Finally, Remy managed to get Emile out of his seat and proceeded to put Emile over his shoulder. “And up we go!”

Emile obviously kicked around, trying to break free. “Patton! Patton, help! Please!” 

“You’re on your own here. I’m not strong enough.”

Logan knew he could probably help if he wanted to. But he didn’t want to. Not after Emile looked into his soul multiple times in the past few days like some freaky mind reader. So he shrugged and continued to eat his food as Emile struggled.

Now that this fiasco was over, Logan swore to himself to never make a pun ever again. Ever.

_Unless it was to make Patton happy, but--_

For right now, no more puns. No way.

The bell rang after a minute or so of Emile’s struggles. Huh. Logan had barely gotten to eat anything today considering his distraction with Dee in the hallway and talking for most of the lunch period. Is this how people with proper friends spend their lunch period? Mostly talking? Almost having no time to eat? Interesting.

Once the bell rang, it didn’t seem like Remy was putting Emile down any time soon. “Okay, the bell rang!” Emile yelled, “You can put me down now!”

“Y’all hear somethin’?” Remy asked, ignoring Emile’s cries for help as he began to walk toward their next class.

Patton put his hand on Remy’s arm in an attempt to maybe stop him, but Remy turned around and said, “Touch me again and I will personally cut those hands off and use them as Christmas tree decorations.”

Yeah okay no Patton wasn’t having that. He put both hands up and backed away.

“NO HE DOESN’T MEAN IT DON’T JUST STAND THERE PLEASE--”

Patton said absolutely nothing as Remy proceeded to grab his and Emile’s stuff and walked out with Emile still over his shoulder. Remy had no problems with looking weird to all of these other people.

Patton and Logan were now slightly more terrified of Remy than they had been before.

They turned to look at each other, and Logan immediately started smiling again once he saw Patton’s face. He wasn’t sure if it was because of the utterly ridiculous events that had just happened, or because it was just Patton. Probably both. But mostly the second reason.

“Are you ready to go to English now?” Logan asked, looking away from Patton for a second to recalibrate his brain and collect his stuff. 

Immediately, Patton nodded, his mildly terrified expression as a result of Remy’s words fading away in an instant. He smiled up at Logan, “Yep!”

He picked his bag up off of the floor, reached inside, and pulled out the frog stickers. Perfect! He held those in one hand and carried his bag with the other.

Patton was really excited. They had so many stickers, he thought maybe they could pass them out to the rest of the class. The presentation was going to be so fun!


	31. Chapter 31

The walk to English class was relatively silent, similar to yesterday. However, now Logan was aware of how much he just-- he had the urge to hold Patton’s hand. And why did he have to feel that way? Emotions were the bane of his existence.

They made it to English eventually, and Logan sat down. He looked around the room, and instantly got a little happier when he didn’t see Gabe.

Oh wait. Gabe was usually late anyway. Don’t get your hopes up.

Patton was still standing, putting his bag down under his seat when Logan spoke up, asking, “Do you want to present first? Because we’re here early, we can go up and ask Mr. Torres to go first or last, or whenever you feel like going.” Logan’s smile from earlier was still present, and it was seemingly impossible to change that now that he’s spent so much time with Patton recently. Dee got pretty close to ruining that, though.

Patton contemplated Logan’s question. People usually never listened to people who were going first, and going in between would seem completely off, so might as well go last.

Leaning against his desk, Patton turned to Logan, “Well, people usually save the best for last, right?” He was beaming, as usual, his sunny disposition still standing strong. He was obviously joking about theirs being the best, but still, Patton thought it was clever.

And Logan returned the smile before momentarily turning away to retrieve his notebook that he would undoubtedly need. As much fun as this presentation would be, Mr. Torres would still expect them to take notes on everyone else’s presentations.

But then Logan’s attention was taken away from the notebook in his hands when he felt a sticker being lightly pressed onto his right cheek. When he turned to face Patton, Patton was ready with another sticker, a puffy one this time, which he placed on Logan’s tie.

“I’m gonna pass these out!” Patton grinned, oblivious to Logan’s wide-eyed, shocked expression. “I’m sure we have more than enough to share, right?”

“Oh-- Of course. We have plenty.” Logan still felt completely caught off guard.

As Patton walked away, beginning his quest to offer every single person a sticker, Logan once again lifted a hand to his cheek to feel the sticker. It was flat, and it felt like thin plastic, so it was most likely another shiny one. Still, that thought only barely registered in Logan’s mind as he watched Patton hand out stickers to anyone willing to take one. 

Unknowingly, a smile crept onto Logan’s face. Even though it could never happen, who says Logan couldn’t enjoy this crush-- his first ever crush, which somehow felt like even more than a crush-- while it lasted.

He’s adorable, beautiful, incredible in so many ways. Stunning inside and out.

And although Logan’s smile dropped slightly, he remembered how lucky he was just to have Patton in his life at all, even as a friend. Most people in this world would never even get the chance to meet Patton, and that was something Logan couldn’t even imagine.

It’s funny how emotions like these can creep up on a person due to the simplest scenarios. Like talking to someone about a school project or watching them hand out stickers to their peers.

Most of the girls chose to ask for the sparkly ones, or the puffy ones, a few scratch n’ sniff being selected. Most of the guys politely declined, however, some did take the stickers. 

Of course most of the people looked confused by the stickers, unaware of the inside joke that caused Patton to even buy them in the first place, but everyone assumed it was just Patton being Patton. 

He once passed out jolly ranchers on the first day of school with little positive notes, simply because he thought everyone deserves to know they matter to someone.

Eventually, Patton made it back to his seat. He had some left over of every type of sticker. The puffy ones were almost completely gone, and Patton was a little sad at that, since they were his favorite. But, he was happy that it made other people happy!

And finally, he arrived. Gabe. The one and only. 

For the past five minutes, Mr. Torres had been working on paperwork while Patton handed out the stickers. Mr. Torres was a cool teacher, although most people didn’t want to admit it, so he didn’t mind that Patton was giving out something so harmless. 

However, that did mean it’s been five minutes since class started and Gabe only just now walked in.

Mr. Torres, understandably, scolded him for being late, and said that he might as well not show up at all. And Gabe took the hint. He had the gall to _actually leave_. Right then and there.

“Well, at least he won’t mess up our presentation?” Logan tried to be positive about it. He knew Patton had difficulty admitting he disliked people, but literally everyone disliked Gabe.

After he left, Mr. Torres came over and knelt down between Logan and Patton’s desks. “So, I presume you two worked on the project alone?”

After a shared glance, both Patton and Logan nodded.

“Yeah, he’ll get a zero. Have fun with your presentation.”

Patton did, honestly, feel a little bit bad for Gabe. Yes, it was Gabe, but Patton still felt like no one deserved to have such a bad grade given to them. Even if he did absolutely nothing. But Patton decided he would still give Gabe a sticker, if he saw him again at all today.

Absentmindedly, waiting for the class to start, Patton began placing some stickers on the desk. Thankfully, they were easy to take off, so Patton didn’t feel bad about leaving a mess for any janitors. Maybe the person in this desk next period would like seeing them!

And he might as well leave _one_ puffy sticker.

Now that he thought about it, Patton didn’t have nearly enough stickers on himself. He put some sparkly ones on his sweater and tried to put a puffy one on his cheek (despite the two shiny ones already there), but his hair got in the way and the sticker ended up stuck.

Logan glanced at Patton, and nearly died at the sight. Wow, he was adorable. He was fiddling with his hair, trying to get the sticker out.

Despite the fact that he should in fact _not_ do what he wanted to do, Logan did it anyway. He reached out, holding Patton’s cheek with one hand as he used the other to pull the sticker from his hair.

“Here,” Logan said, brushing Patton’s hair aside and placing the sticker on his cheek.

And now it was Patton’s turn to be caught completely off guard. Once he realized what was happening, Patton actually felt like his breathing suddenly stopped. He didn’t know why, but it did.

When the sticker was finally out of his hair and Logan had removed his hand, that’s when Patton felt like he could breathe again.

“Thanks…” Patton smiled at Logan before making the very conscious decision to look away right that instant. He focused back on the stickers, placing them on his sweater and hands. 

Neither of them even noticed, but there was a warm feeling spreading across Patton’s face, and a pink tint to his cheeks. Patton wasn’t even aware of it, and neither was Logan.

Logan continued to take small glances at Patton as the class began, and the first group was setting up their presentation. Throughout the next few presentations, Logan found himself continually taking glances at Patton. It started after the whole sticker fiasco.

The lights in the room were off so that the screen projector could be seen easier, so it was darker in the room than normal. How did something as simple as a change in lighting make Patton look even more beautiful?

Wow, Logan was so much gayer than he ever thought.

Luckily for Patton, the low light pretty much completely obscured his blush. And luckily for Logan, the lighting gave him the exact same favor.

And Patton had kept smiling, all the way through the next presentations. It stayed ever since the sticker ordeal. Most people would assume he’s happy for no reason, which was usually the case. People just accepted it, so no one thought it was weird.

But, at least to Patton, it’s really obvious why he’s smiling. Like usual, Logan had caused it. He wondered why no one even seemed to notice.

A few more presentations went by, the five other groups completing their individual projects about Macbeth. Turns out, in his distraction at watching Patton hand out the stickers, Logan had completely forgotten to ask to go last. At least they ended up going last anyway.

It was now their turn. Logan was so glad Gabe was gone. The chance of ruining his school work was a terrifying concept to Logan.

They both stood, and Logan headed over to the teacher’s computer while Patton went up in front of the projector. Logan logged into his account, opening up the slides and clicking present.

Staying at the computer in order to keep moving to the next slides, he introduced their presentation, “Our presentation is about the theatrical history of Macbeth.” He clicked the spacebar to move to the next slide.

They went through each slide, explaining the ones that they had typed up. Patton was really excited, even though it was only a presentation. He supposed it was mostly fun because they had worked so hard and had been working on it for what felt like an eternity.

Turns out a lot can happen in a week. It was only Monday they found out about this project?

Patton had promised himself that he would make this (otherwise boring) presentation fun for everyone else, so whenever Logan moved on to one of Patton’s slides, Patton immediately started explaining, very animatedly, whatever it was he had to explain.

Logan was, obviously, explaining his points methodically and without much fanfare, unlike Patton. And although it would normally annoy Logan to no end for someone to act so ridiculous during a presentation… it was Patton. So, Logan was smiling, happily listening as he spoke and even got a few people to laugh at his antics.

Thankfully the class (hopefully) didn’t catch onto Logan’s lovesick expression. He tried not to be too obvious. Hopefully no one noticed.

And finally, the presentation was almost over, and Patton’s favorite slide came up. The one with the frog.

People put two and two together with the stickers, finally understanding why Patton handed them out, before Patton said his final statement.

“I suppose this is the end of a not so _hoppy_ tale. Too bad they had to _croak_ like that!”

Luckily, no bad reactions! A few groans here and there, but nothing bad. Some people even laughed, too! Patton felt so happy, he did a good job leading up to this.

Logan looked over at Patton and smiled. These ridiculous things he did, even if they made some people groan in annoyance (Logan included on some occasions), they were just so… _Patton_. He did these things, and even when Logan pretends to be annoyed, he always ends up smiling anyway.

He didn’t want to hide his joy right now, though. He smiled at Patton, happy simply because Patton was happy.

And isn’t that a strange thought? Logan wanted to show his emotions? Purposefully? Like, he was actively thinking about how he used to hide his emotions and how he really, really, doesn’t want to at the moment. It feels good to smile at ridiculous frog stickers and Patton skipping around the room handing them out to everyone and these horribly stupid puns.

Logan’s smile dropped slightly and was replaced with a look of awed surprise in the split second he realized all of that. Patton really did bring out the best in him, huh?

But Patton noticed the happy expression while it lasted. Gosh, just as great as any other smile Logan ever gave. Patton felt amazing about the fact he was able to make that happen. He’s done it a bunch of times, but he was always super stoked whenever it happened.

Patton took a small, playful bow as Logan came out of his thoughts, shaking his head slightly and exiting out of the presentation.

Mr. Torres, turning on the lights again, said, “Alright, that’s quite enough. That was a _ribbeting_ presentation you two gave.”

Most of the students groaned now that it was an adult making the stupid puns, but most of them were used to this sort of thing from Mr. Torres by now anyway.

“All of you did great. You all seem to have a great understanding of the history behind the play. And now we’re finally going to start looking at the actual play next class, on Monday. We are going to be reading out loud and assigning parts based purely on how much you want to read. Everyone will participate, but you don’t have to do much if you don’t want to.”

Patton was, surprisingly, really worried about that announcement. Don’t get him wrong, he loved acting and stuff, but that was only around friends. When it came to real stuff, like this, he was more like… silent support. Maybe he could ask if he could have a small part. The smallest possible.

Then again, he has spent a lot of time with Roman during all of his rehearsals. Maybe Patton would be able to use some of those acting tricks he had.

For right now, he brushed off the feeling of nervousness. Right now, he should just be happy the presentation went great.

Logan was also unenthusiastic about the news. Logan would certainly prefer a smaller part. He rolled his eyes thinking about it. That’s in the future, though. In this moment, Logan could just enjoy being here with Patton, a frog sticker on his cheek and happiness in his heart.

Logan smiled at Patton. Despite some of the recent events of the past week, it was nice to just… smile.

Patton, of course, misinterpreted the expression. He thought Logan was happy about acting. Was he? He definitely didn’t seem like the type. If Logan ever wanted to be involved in theatre, he seemed like the type of person to join the crew, working on technical stuff behind the scenes. So why did he seem so happy?

Now that Patton thought about it, Logan does seem a lot more… well, he seemed to be smiling a lot more. And that’s definitely not a bad thing! Patton loves seeing him happy! But still, he wonders what the sudden change was.

And despite the faint memory of their most recent phone call, the day of the bathroom event, Patton still couldn’t believe that he had been the cause of the change.

Logan glanced at the clock and saw that they only had a minute or so left of class.

“I’m glad our… presentation went well.” The pause in the sentence was small, but evident. Sure, Logan was glad about that, but in reality he was happy that _Patton_ is doing well. He’s getting better after the horrible things that have happened to him recently.

Roman breaking up with him, the rumors, and Logan himself saying some pretty terrible things about Patton just to get people off his back about these rumors. There’s no excuse, it hurt Patton.

But, as much as Logan was confused by Patton’s generous and caring nature, it seems Patton is willing to move on. He hasn’t been too affected by Roman, he’s forgiven Logan (even though Logan definitely hasn’t forgiven himself), and it seems Patton is even trying to make amends with Dee. Logan’s scared for him, obviously, but it’s admirable that Patton is trying hard to make things right.

One of the many reasons Logan admires him. Romantically, and… just in general. Patton is incredible.

“Yeah! It was super fun, too! I have some more stickers too! I’ll give some to Gabe whenever I see him.” Patton responded. And of course Logan was happy! The presentation went well, that’s why!

The bell rang, interrupting Logan’s thoughts. He gathered his stuff in his arms, ready to leave. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” Logan said, sounding simultaneously excited about going to the vet with Patton, yet also sad about leaving right now.

Patton was putting his stickers in his bag, and he zipped it up before he stood up and faced Logan, “Yeah, I’ll see you then!” He gave Logan one final smile before making his way to the door.

This day went a lot better than how he thought it would go. Everything seemed perfect and it seemed like things were starting to look up.

When Logan reached his next class, he took the sticker off and placed it on his notebook. He made it through his final class of the day in a blur. What was the point of focusing? He already knew all of the material.

Logan’s been doing that a lot recently. Spacing out during classes. Though, before today, it’s always been for negative reasons. Today, it was because he was happier than he’s been in a long time.

Patton spent the rest of his day feeling similarly. He had a spark of joy in him that he happily shared with others. Sure, not many were pleasant towards him anymore, but that didn’t mean Patton couldn’t be nice.

He knew being nice wouldn’t change these people’s thoughts about him, but he didn’t consider anyone an enemy, so why not at least try to be nice. It made Patton feel better about everything to share the happiness he currently felt.

The bell finally rang, and Logan headed out to his car to drop off Virgil, as usual.

Patton met up with Remy and Emile to talk for a bit, telling them about the presentation, and even gave them some of the last remaining frog stickers. Remy absolutely despised frogs now after all of the puns, but he saw how happy Patton looked, and he just couldn’t say no.

Afterwards, the three went their separate ways and Patton walked home. He had a smile through the whole walk, though not entirely sure of the cause.

It had just been a really great day!

When Logan finally came home, one of the first things he did was grab the book he started reading yesterday. He stayed up a little later than he usually did. All he did was read, and it was a Friday night, so he had a decent excuse to stay up late. He didn’t have anywhere to be early in the morning tomorrow.

He had a small, old desk lamp on next to him, providing some muted yellow light in the otherwise dark room.

But then he heard a small noise, a notification, from the sheets next to him, accompanied by a bluish-white light. He had a text from Virgil.

He placed his book down, picked up the phone, and stared at the message. He had to reread it a few times.

_[you really do love him, huh?]_

After a minute or so of staring at the phone, Logan’s mind running haywire and yet only a single thought, a single word, in his mind, he finally responded.

_[I don’t know]_

That definitely wasn’t what his mind was telling him, though.

There was an immediate response. And after it was sent, another message quickly followed.

_[do you wanna talk about it?]_

_[i know this is new for you. but this is serious and it’s so different than i’ve seen you act, ever]_

After a second of contemplation, Logan responded

_[Yeah.]_

And that set in motion a conversation that lasted two hours. It took a while, but Logan fell asleep with a much better understanding of it all. Maybe he really was in love? He didn’t need to think about that quite yet. It’s only been a few days… 

He shut off his lamp and finally laid down. He didn’t really sleep for another half hour or so. Eventually, exhaustion washed over him, and he finally went to sleep.

During that time, Patton had spent his time with Fred and George. Mostly George, since… Fred wasn’t too happy with anyone at the moment.

They had been watching a bunch of disney movies, a lot with princes. Patton’s favorite would have to be Brave, though. He just thought it was awesome how this movie was about a princess _without_ a prince. It didn’t need a prince to be interesting. It was about a strong bond, and love.

Now that he thought about it, Patton could really relate to the whole princess movie situation.

A goblin disguised as a prince, who steals the heart of another prince and soon destroys every ounce of power within it, but it’s revived by someone that no one, not even the audience or the prince himself, could predict would bring it back.

Just the thought made Patton happy. Logan was like some type of force that pulled him out of that darkness Roman had over him. Logan wasn’t perfect, but he was trying, and it worked. _It worked._

Patton and the weasels had fallen asleep eventually, peacefully. Happy.


	32. Chapter 32

As a consequence of the previous night in which Logan stayed up for hours while Virgil talked him through his… _feelings_ … Logan had woken up the next morning a lot later than he usually did. Taking his phone and glasses from the dark, wooden side table next to his bed, he placed his glasses on his face and turned his phone on--

It was 11:00!? How impractical.

After his initial shock at glancing at the time, he realized he really couldn’t be bothered to move at the moment. Instead, he opened up his messages, scrolling back through his and Virgil’s conversation. He remembered yesterday. The frog stickers and the puns, Patton’s lovely smiles, and Logan’s deeper understanding of his own emotions by the end of the night.

The thoughts immediately brought a smile to Logan’s face.

Reluctantly, he got up from his bed. As usual, he made the bed before heading downstairs to make breakfast. 

Half an hour later and one empty plate in front of him at his kitchen table, Logan pulled out his phone to message Patton.

_[Good morning. How is Fred doing? When would you like to leave for the vet?]_

By the time Patton received the message, he had been awake for an hour or so. He was watching Netflix on his phone with Fred and George, cuddling up on the living room couch with the weasels while wearing the most comfortable thing he owned, his cat hoodie.

So when the notification popped up on his screen and he read the name, he immediately grinned, pausing the movie and sitting up slightly to type out a response. Of course, now that he moved, both of the weasels took this as an invitation to wake up and run off to the kitchen somewhere. 

Now would probably be a great time for a snack break, huh?

Turning his attention back to his phone, he read through the message while he followed the weasels into the kitchen.

_[Morning to you too :D! Fred’s being Fred. I’m ready to leave whenever you are]_

_[I’ll be a bit. I just woke up. Virgil kept me up all night with his texting, so I slept in a little later than usual.]_

After sending that, Logan headed upstairs to take a quick shower. Logan was the type to somehow magically shower within five minutes, so he wasn’t too concerned about taking too long.

While he was gone though, Patton sent another message.

_[Whaaat? You? Logan?? Barely waking up??? :0 You sure you’re the real Logan?]_

During the next few minutes that Patton went without a response, he took some ham out of the fridge and fed the weasels, but instantly snapped his attention back to his phone on the counter when he heard a notification.

Logan had stepped out of the shower, seeing that he had another message. He rolled his eyes at it, but was smiling nonetheless. He got dressed and dried his hair before actually responding.

_[Yes, as strange as it may seem, I AM human.]_

Logan smiled down at his own message. Huh. It was strange to make jokes about him being “robotic” since he’s dealt with so much teasing about it over the years.

Though Logan didn’t feel like he acted like that anymore.

Patton read through the message, smiling before remembering he had to get ready. He took Fred and George upstairs to pet them in their cage. After doing so, he spoke gently to them, “Don’t hate me, but we’re going to the vet…” Both of the weasels just blinked up at him. Still, Patton responded, “I know, I’m sorry.”

They obviously had no idea what was going on.

He left the cage alone for the time being, turning and looking at himself in the mirror. He decided to change out of the leggings he had on into some blue shorts, keeping on his cat hoodie. His hair wasn’t really brushed, but oh well.

Oh and also he put on his light-up wheelies. It was a special occasion. They had blue lights! _And they were wheelies!_

Logan, on the other hand, looked just as much like a nerd as he usually did. Black jeans, a blue button-up shirt, and a darker blue sweater vest over it.

He then grabbed his keys before sending Patton a quick message and heading out to his car.

_[I’m on my way now.]_

_[ʕ ·ᴥ·ʔ alrighty!]_

Patton picked up the cage and walked out of his room and downstairs. He was going to wait inside. Still, he decided to put the cage down and go to the kitchen to make some snacks.

Logan made the quick drive to Patton’s house and stepped out of the car. He walked up to the door and rang the doorbell.

As much as he was worried for Fred, Logan was still very excited about today. He always loved spending time with Patton, especially recently. Considering the usual undesirable circumstances of their time together, it was nice to just do something normal together.

Patton was in the middle of packing a small paper bag with snacks. It had two kool-aid jammers, fruit snacks, cookies, and some apple slices in ziplock bags.

He made his way to the door to open it, smiling at the sight of the other, “Hey Lo!” Patton moved over to the side so he could come in, and went to pick up Fred and George’s cage while also carrying the snacks.

Honestly, the nickname caught Logan a little by surprise. It was… endearing. He smiled. “Greetings, Patton.”

Logan immediately noticed Patton holding the bag, and without even questioning what it was nor the importance of it (which is probably what he would have done only a week ago before he’d gone through so many sudden changes), he reached out, gestured to the bag and the cage, and offered, “Let me carry something for you. You don’t have to carry all of that.”

Patton glanced between the stuff in his hands and back up at Logan. “Oh! It’s fine. It’s just snacks, so it isn’t even really too heavy.” Well, the bag wasn’t heavy. The cage was carrying two weasels, though, so…

Patton clearly wasn’t the strongest person. But someone would probably have to pry these things out of his cold dead hands before he makes another person carry their stuff.

“It’s not about weight,” Logan argued, “The weasels are literally shaking the cage. One of those things is going to fall eventually.” Logan tried not to insist, even though he wanted to. Patton could probably make it the short distance to his car. It was on the driveway, anyway.

When Patton’s gaze immediately hardened in determination to carry it, Logan sighed and reluctantly began walking toward his car, continually making glances back at Patton to assure he was doing okay.

And yeah, Patton knew that Logan was definitely right. But still, he was stubborn. He had made the decision to carry both of these things. He could be strong!

Or at least act like he is--

It definitely wasn’t easy. Fred kept going back and forth in the cage, shifting it’s balance whenever Patton got used to it. Still, Patton followed Logan out of the house. He knew that if he dropped the babies Patton would never forgive himself for months.

When Logan reached the car, he turned and saw that Patton was only halfway there. He was struggling with the cage.

Patton wouldn’t admit it until later, but surely he’d be grateful for some help. Logan walked back up the driveway and grabbed the bag, smiling kindly at Patton.

“Seriously, I don’t mind helping you,” He had a gentle expression to show he wasn’t resentful to Patton for not listening to him in the first place.

After a while of experiencing Roman’s bullshit, Logan knew that Roman could be quite secretive with his emotions. Patton, being how emotionally intuitive he is, probably picked up on Roman’s silent negative emotions. Despite how upbeat and energetic he seemed, Roman could be quite a negative person. Angry or sad or anything in between, those are the things Roman kept hidden. So if he was ever angry or upset at Patton…

Logan could only imagine what a year of silently dealing with the fact that someone you’re close to could be upset at you could do to someone like Patton. So Logan knows to be careful.

At least he knows now. Logan has to somehow strike the balance of letting Patton know it’s okay to ask for help, that Logan’s not made, and while also somehow not spilling all of his _feelings_. Oh, just the idea of talking about feelings with Patton is a bad idea, what with how conversations like that have gone in the past.

Either way, Logan hoped he conveyed his message clearly. That he was more than willing to help-- in fact, he was eager to. It made him happy.

Patton, admittedly, was slightly bummed that he wasn’t able to do it. But at least it seemed like Logan actually wanted to help. He already knew he wasn’t going to be able to do it, but he still wanted to try and prove a point. But it’s fine, he was still going to appreciate Logan’s help.

He returned Logan’s smile, “Thanks, Lo.” He meant it genuinely, not just because it was his obligation to thank him. That reminded Patton-- this would probably be added to the ever-expanding, giant list of things Patton wanted to thank Logan for.

They both made their way to the car, and Logan opened up the back door, placing the bag inside before stepping aside so Patton could put the cage down. And then, just like at the store, Logan opened up the passenger door for Patton again, waiting for him to sit down before walking around the car to sit in the driver’s seat.

After they both buckled in and Logan was starting the car, Logan spoke up, “So, what was that bag for?”

“Oh! Just some snacks for us,” Patton perked up at the mention of the snacks he prepared. And of course Patton made snacks, Logan thought. Still, Patton elaborated, “Just some small things. I figured we could eat some while we’re waiting or when we’re coming back. I got juice, cookies, gummies, and fruit! Apples slices to be exact-- if that’s okay?” Patton's voice got significantly quieter at that last question.

“More than okay. Thank you, Patton,” Logan reassured him, hearing the mild uncertainty in Patton’s voice. For what reason, Logan wasn’t sure. 

The car ride was relatively quiet, but it was a comfortable silence. Patton had opened a package of fruit snacks on the ride there, happily eating the red ones first. The yellow ones were the worst, so he didn’t even bother with those.

The ride was peaceful, and neither felt much of a need to speak. Patton enjoyed how peaceful it was. Whenever he was with Logan, he just felt a sense of relief, like he didn’t have to worry.

After about ten minutes, they had reached the vet and Logan was parking the car. He glanced back at the cage to make sure everything was okay.

Which it was not.

From what Logan could see (and hear), Fred was freaking out again, frantically moving around in the cage while George just laid down calmly.

Both of the boys stepped out of the car and Logan opened the door to the backseat, taking the cage out of the car before turning to Patton, asking, “So, do you normally go to this vet?” 

As soon as the question left Logan’s mouth, he remembered… the weasels had technically never been quite… _legal_ until recently when Logan got a license to own them. Maybe they weren’t even properly vaccinated? Do weasels get vaccines? Presumably, since they are animals and are being kept as pets… Oh no, what if Fred is seriously sick!?

Patton’s voice brought Logan out of his mild panic. He had shrugged before asking, “I’m sure Fred is fine though… right?”

Patton usually took care of the weasels as best as he could at home rather than go out for it. Besides, it's not like he even has a car to get here. Plus, Roman cared enough about the weasels to take Patton to the vet.

“He should be okay. Though while we’re here, we might as well get them updated on any shots they might be missing. Although I’m unsure what they would even need… But, Fred should be okay since I got him recently and from professionals. Though, I’m not sure what could possibly be wrong with him.”

They had been having this conversation as they made their way to the door, and finally, they stepped inside, a small bell ringing upon the door being swung open. The place was cozy and decorated in pastel colors with decals of paw prints and silhouettes of animals along the walls. A short girl with choppy, short blue hair at the front desk greeted them.

“Hello! How are you two today? What can I help you with?”

Patton had obviously been overwhelmed with joy at the atmosphere of the lobby. Everything just looked so warm and cozy and lovely! He’s never really been to a vet before, so it’s not like Patton was expecting something like this. Then again, he really had no expectations at all.

He smiled as his attention was brought to the girl at the desk. “Hi! Uh--” Patton faltered, not quite sure what to say.

Logan saw Patton’s hesitation and lifted the cage with the weasels, telling the girl, “Fred, the white and black one, has been acting a little strange lately. He’s been more aggressive than usual and we’re pretty worried about him.”

“Ah, yes of course. Do you mind if I see your license for owning wild animals?”

Logan placed the cage on the counter and then took out his wallet, taking out the small card and placing it on the counter, glad that he took these precautions beforehand.

The blue-haired girl checked over it and called in a veterinarian, absentmindedly saying, “Honestly, I hate that people have to go through such extremes to get pets. Sure, they’re wild animals, but as long as you raise ‘em right, what’s the issue? I hate these stupid licenses.”

While Logan continued conversation with the girl, Patton was looking into the cage. George was fast asleep in the cage, probably not even knowing or caring where he was at all. Fred, on the other hand, was looking around the place, taking in as much as he could see from the cage as if he were fascinated with this brand new place. 

Patton was more than sure Fred was alright, but if something _was_ wrong then he was prepared to give all of his trust to these vets. They knew what they were doing. Plus, this front desk girl seemed super nice! Also her hair was cool.

Another woman, this one with blonde hair and that stood almost as tall as Logan, walked into the room from a back door behind the counter. She introduced herself, “Hello, I’ll be helping you with your pets today. My name is Kelly. It’s nice to meet you two.” She held her hand out to shake Logan’s hand, and then moved to Patton. The way she acted, she seemed like a perfect blend of professional and caring.

She took the cage and carried it into the back room, gesturing for Logan and Patton to follow her while keeping a kind smile on her face. Inside the room, the color scheme and animal decals gave off the vibe of a doctor’s office for children, with a similar pastel theme as the lobby, and a large window letting in sunlight that was framed between some shelves filled with treats on one side and various tools, medicines, and other supplies on the other.

Kelly placed the cage on a small table in the center, and opened it, allowing Fred to quickly dash out of the cage. Kelly quickly grabbed him, picking him up and gently petting his head to calm him down. Surprisingly, it worked!

Wow. That was a first. Maybe Fred just didn’t like Patton at all… Whatever! Patton still loved him. Even if his son hates him now for some reason.

Oh, well now Patton’s sad.

He sat down in one of the three chairs lined against a wall in the room, and Logan sat down next to him. Patton took out the bag of snacks and took out one of the ziplock bags with apples. Desperate times call for desperate stress eating.

George was awoken once the cage was open, but he didn’t really escape. He walked to the door of the cage and peeked out, looking between Patton and Fred.

Patton stood, picking up George and bringing him over to his seat. He let George sit in his lap, and thankfully that calmed Patton down a little bit. He was able to pet George, leaving the apples discarded for the time being. However, George never took his eyes off of Fred.

“Alright,” Kelly said, “I’m assuming you just need a check-up and if we find any issues, we’ll talk to you about whatever this little guy might need?”

“Yes, except we would also like you to check this one,” Logan gestured toward George, who was still worriedly watching Fred from his position on Patton’s lap, “Just in case.”

Kelly nodded in acknowledgement of Logan’s words before she got to examining Fred. She checked his fur, his eyes, and then placed him on his back to examine his stomach and whatnot. After another minute of examination, Kelly looked a little concerned.

“You said this one’s name was Fred, correct?”

Logan glanced over at Patton, then back at Kelly, confused as to why she would ask a question like that. Patton had begun stress-eating again at Kelly’s question, taking another apple slice. After a moment, Logan hesitantly responded, “Um, yes?”

“Well, I believe that… Fred is a girl.”

And that’s when Patton choked on the apple slice. He was definitely not prepared to hear that.

“WHAT!?” Patton said hoarsely between his coughs.

As soon as he started choking, George had climbed up on his back to get closer to Patton’s neck. This wasn’t the first time this has happened, So George usually got other people’s help. Smart animal.

Logan looked just as shocked as Patton when he heard the news, but then he heard Patton choking and saw Goerge scurrying around to make room for someone to do the Heimlich maneuver.

Logan panicked for a second before patting Patton on the back a few times, hoping it was enough to get it out. 

Wow, that had certainly been a strong reaction to the news.

Thankfully, Logan’s efforts were enough to help Patton out. He took a moment to clear his throat and breathe, but otherwise Patton was fine. He was just taken _way_ off guard by that news, obviously.

George sniffed Logan’s hand, almost as if to say his work was done and that he did a good job. Yeah, good job mom. Yes, Logan was mom.

After that ordeal, George climbed off of Patton’s back and got back onto his lap, just in case Patton needed him for support.

“Uhh…” Kelly said awkwardly, “Sorry for springing that on you, I guess. But yes, Fred here is a girl. Which means it opens up some more possibilities for his-- her behavior. She doesn’t appear to be sick at all. No fleas, worms, infections or anything of the sort.”

“So, do you have any idea what the issue could be?” Logan asked.

“Well, I might need to see that other one to confirm my suspicions.”

Patton was relieved to have heard nothing serious could be wrong with Fred-- well, should they even call them that anymore? Him? Her? Her. So, Patton was gonna have to get used to that. He wasn’t changing the name though, not under any circumstances!

He looked at George, not really wanting to just hand him over. No doubt, he trusted these people, but still. Why did they need to see George? George looked up at the vet as Patton picked him up from his lap and cradled him in his arms. Such a good boy.

Kelly gently lifted George from Patton’s arms, quickly examining him before handing him back to Patton.

“Alright, so you didn’t make the same mistake twice. This one is definitely a guy. One that isn’t neutered. I have a feeling that these two may have been a tad bit busy while you two were away. Now, I’m going to drop some news on you, just a theory though. Don’t freak out this time… Fred may be pregnant.”

It took Patton a very _long_ moment to process this. He was mostly just staring at the floor as if he was solving the world’s hardest math equation in his head. This lasted about seven seconds.

And then-- “Grandbabies!” Patton perked up, grinning at Kelly as he looked up from the floor. And then he turned to Logan, frantically pointing between them as his grin grew, “Grandparents!!”

Kelly laughed at the reaction to the news, this guy was so bubbly and energetic. The tall dude was lucky to have such a cute boyfriend. (Obviously she thinks they’re dating after Patton happily calls himself and Logan grandparents. Adorable.)

Logan, on the other hand, was beginning to feel his face heat up. Patton was simultaneously being adorable and just hearing the word “grandparents” in reference to the two of them made Logan so incredibly happy. He tried to ignore that for now, though.

“Yep! Grandparents!” Logan said, his voice sounding a little strained from his embarrassment.

He cleared his throat and asked Kelly, “Do you think it’s possible to do something like… an ultrasound? Can that be done for these animals?”

“Well, it may be a little too early for something like that. When did these two first meet?”

Thinking back through the events of the past few days, it felt a lot longer than it actually was. Logan replied, “Exactly a week ago.”

“Well, then they most likely mated a few days after that. The gestation period for ferrets and weasels is about six weeks, so… actually, an ultrasound might be possible pretty soon! Probably about a week or so.”

Patton’s shock was very quickly replaced with joy. He was gonna be a grandpa! Wait, was that a good thing or a bad thing? At his age? Oh whatever, point is, him and Logan shall be excellent grandparents. No doubt he would spoil them.

In his excitement, Patton was already thinking of names.

“We could name the babies after the rest of the Weasley family! Should we change Fred’s name? No, no, it’s too perfect. Wait-- is this incest? Oh gosh-- No, they’re just names. They aren’t actually part of the Weasely family! Wait! How many do you think there’s gonna be? I say at least four! Ah! We’re gonna be perfect grandparents!” Patton rambled, excitement overflowing.

Logan smiled at Patton’s rant. It was nice seeing him get excited over this.

“Of course,” Is all Logan responded with. He said it calmly, and yet his happy expression was more than evident.

“Okay--” Kelly interrupted before Patton got too overjoyed, “You two can wait in the lobby while I give them both a check-up.” Kelly pressed a small button on the wall near the door, and there was a faint beep noise through the door before the blue-haired girl entered the room.

It seemed like they were the only two people in the building. Maybe she was also a nurse for the animals and helped them while the vet worked? Huh. Logan had no clue how veterinarian offices worked.

Patton wasn’t really sure how this would work, mostly because he never really thought he would become a grandfather so quickly.

“Okay, so here’s what I’m thinking,” Patton started speaking as they both stood up, Logan opening and holding open the door for a rambling Patton, “If there’s more than what I think there is, we’ll name some of the weasels after the professors at Hogwarts. Or you could name any extras yourself. Your choice, really!”

Patton smiled, continuing his rant as both boys made their way into the lobby, sitting in some of the soft, gray chairs in the brightly colored room, “This is so exciting, isn’t it?” Patton wondered if Logan was as happy as he was, especially considering the fact this meant even more babies for them to take care of!

“We’re like-- a giant weasel family! I might even need another cage…”

“Well, I could always take a few home with me if you run out of room, Patton.” Could he really, though? Logan doubts his parents would be okay with this. Still, Logan would never even dare suggest adoption for any of the weasels. He already knows Patton would say no to that.

As they sat, waiting, Patton continued to ramble on and on about these babies. How would they look? Would they like him? Would Fred be nicer now?

Eventually, Patton came to realize that he was probably talking a bit too much. He smiled awkwardly, scratching the back of his head as he stopped him. He apologized, “Sorry, I’m just _really_ excited about this!” After saying that, Patton offered Logan one of the snacks from the snack bag. Now seems like a good time for that, anyway.

Logan took out the unopened bag of apple slices, returning Patton’s apologetic smile with a genuinely grateful one, “No, of course you’re excited about this. You love animals, especially Fred and George. I’d be shocked if you weren’t excited.”

Patton’s smile turned a little happier at that, taking out the other package of fruit snacks and enjoying them as they waited for the vets.

After a minute or so of silence, Logan’s curiosity got the better of him, and he decided to ask Patton a question that’s been nagging at his mind for the better part of a twenty-four hours now, “So, what got you talking to Dee? Did you want to make up with him or something?”

Patton believed he trusted Logan enough to tell him what was going on. He was like-- his best friend after all.

“Well, He actually isn’t as bad as people think. He um-- he actually helped us out a lot with what people were saying with rumors and stuff. I thought I might as well give him a chance. Ya know?”

Logan looked a little uncertain about what Patton said, “He _helped_ you? Didn’t he spread those rumors in the first place? Sure, they came from Roman, but… It was mostly Dee who got the word around.”

Patton’s smile faded a little bit. “Uh… n-no I don’t think so?” Now that he’s thought about it, Patton wasn’t even really sure. “I mean-- I know he lies a lot, but… Why would he help me if he’s the one who started it? It doesn’t really make much sense, Lo.”

Logan’s was surprised by the ounce of harshness in Patton’s voice, though he was sure it was unintentional. Logan decided not the comment on it. “Didn’t you ever consider that he could also be lying about helping you? He could have just said that without actually doing anything…”

He tried to keep his voice level, calm. He was also trying to phrase it like it wasn’t meant to patronize Patton. But apparently, that’s the only thing Logan knows how to do. He made it sound like he was trying to be smarter than everyone else again.

Right after he spoke, Logan immediately cringed. He regretted saying it.

Patton thought about Logan’s words. He didn’t want to consider it. He wanted to believe that Dee could be a good person. He wanted to know he would have someone else he could trust.

“N-No, of course not. Why would he? I mean, I can see where you’re coming from, but he wouldn’t do that. I trust him.”

Logan looked like he had been doused in cold water. Patton _trusted_ Dee? Really?

Dee had been terrible to Patton, and probably more important to Patton’s sympathetic heart… Dee had acted even worse to Virgil. Sure, it had been years since then, but had it ever really stopped? Dee just became less obvious in his tormenting. Keeping his profile low and doing horrible, nasty things to anyone he deemed interesting enough to torment.

And that was a revelation that made the probability of this party being a trap even more obvious in Logan’s mind.

“You… you trust him. Alright,” As much as he tried, Logan couldn’t keep the worry out of his tone. However, what he hoped Patton wouldn’t pick up on was his disappointment. Everyone knew Dee to be an evil, lying snake. Wrecking havoc purely for the fun of it. How could Patton not see that?

Quickly correcting himself, Logan elaborated, “Okay,” He sighed, willing to hear Patton out, “You trust him. I will respect that as long as you respect that I most assuredly do _not_ trust him. I just… be safe. If you’re going to do this, be safe, please?” Logan was basically pleading with Patton. There was no way in hell he was going to stop Patton, not with the controlling environment he had only recently escaped from, but that doesn’t mean Logan can’t be worried. And he was certainly going to do that.

Patton nodded to Logan’s words, but his expression showed something different. Patton sensed there was clearly something off about the way Logan was speaking to him, but Patton didn’t want to go too much into it.

If he wanted to be judged for his choices, he would have stuck with Roman.

Patton saw that giving Dee an opportunity to show he wasn’t such a bad guy could be the start of a new friendship. Because that’s what Patton does. He hasn’t considered Dee friend for a long time, ever since they had their falling out early in their childhood. Still, there was the possibility of them reconnecting, and it was here. It was right here.

So far, Patton thought Dee had been showing signs of an actual good side, for example, telling people about what actually happened between him, Roman, and Logan.

“If you’re not willing to trust Dee, then can you at least do me a favor?” Patton asked. Logan was listening. “Trust _me_. If you’re my friend, you’ll trust that I’m making a good decision. I’ll be okay.” Patton offered Logan a reassuring smile.

Without any hesitation, Logan responded, “Of course I trust you. I can always trust that you’re doing the right thing. You’re such a good person, and the fact that you trust people so easily is… admirable.”

Logan looked directly into Patton’s eyes as he said this, and upon realization of what he just said, and with such honesty, Logan’s face heated up slightly and he turned away, looking down.

“I know that what you’re doing is right, Patton,” Logan elaborated, “Trying to make amends is always a good thing. But just because you’re willing and open to change doesn’t mean he is. I trust you, but that doesn’t mean I can fully trust _him._ ” He paused, thinking, “To elaborate, I’ll leave you be. I will not worry, I will not text or call or do anything else. You deserve it, and you trust him, so… But keep in mind that if you reach out to me, I’ll be there, okay? You have my trust Patton, and he has yours. But that doesn’t mean I can’t be prepared if he breaks that trust, okay?”

Patton looked at Logan even when Logan wasn’t looking back at him. Patton sat, almost in disbelief. Logan still didn’t want to even _try_ to trust Dee? If Patton could trust him, why couldn’t Logan?

“I’m not trying to push you or anything, but you can believe me when I say Dee is a good person. He’s nice.” Patton crossed his arms and let out a small sigh, “You shouldn’t even expect a phone call or text because I know I’m not going to need you. I trust him enough to know that.”

He was choosing to trust Dee more than Logan? Or, at least in Patton’s mind, in this moment, that’s what it seemed to be.

“Believe it or not, he’s actually helped me,” Patton mumbled, finally looking away from Logan.

“He’s helped you?” Logan sounded like he was in complete disbelief. During Patton’s entire rant, Logan seemed to be shocked at his tone of voice. Patton sounded like he was angry… that never-- what did Logan do wrong?

“Okay…” Logan tried to calm himself down, “Look, I… I can believe you. He may have changed for the better, but you still have to keep in mind how he treated Virgil-- how he _still_ treats Virgil! You may not have known us for a long time, but you’ve heard all about his years of torment because of Dee. We’ve all told you, all three of us. I can’t just forget about all of that, Patton.”

“I get it, okay? Everybody always says he’s a bad person, but people deserve second chances!” Patton pointed out, still refusing to even look at Logan as he spoke, “You may not believe in that, but I do! I _always_ give people a second chance, maybe even more, because that’s what _I_ believe in!”

Patton then added, “And yeah, I know what you guys say about him, but you also have to remember that I actually used to be his friend. Doesn’t matter how long ago it was, I considered him a good person, and I still do!”

Ignoring the second part of Patton’s rant, Logan responded, “Obviously I know you give second chances! And I’m forever grateful for it. I fucked up majorly only a few days ago. I said terrible things about you in the hallway to get rid of those rumors and it only made things worse.” Logan cringed at the memories of hearing Patton’s cries while he sat on the cold bathroom floor, begging for even a sliver of forgiveness.

Logan sighed, and looked up to Patton again, meeting his eyes, “I don’t think that I’ve become a better person since then. I doubt myself, regularly. I occasionally think that I’m not worthy of being your friend, and every time I think something like that, you give me more and more chances. It’s unfair. And look!” Logan groaned, dropping his head into his hands.

What he said next was barely above a whisper, “Look. I’m doing it again… I’m making you upset and I… I’ll just leave, okay? We’ll wait for Fred, and then I’ll drive you home and you can go have fun at the party with Dee and Remus. I trust you. Completely… okay? And… and I trust him. You seem to trust him, despite everything, and that’s good enough for me, Patton.”

Logan paused, evaluating his next words, and looked up from his hands to look Patton in the eyes again. Still, hunched over, again being reminded that this past week has held more emotional turmoil for Logan than the entirety of his life, he said with utmost certainty, “I promise.”

Patton was starting to feel guilty. Except this time, it wasn’t because of how Logan was acting. It was because of how he himself was acting. The way Logan just blamed himself, sounded so genuine about it. It didn’t sound like the way Roman always sounded when he tried to trick Patton into forgiveness. And Logan was a terrible liar. He meant it. _He meant it._ Logan really blamed himself for this, and it made Patton feel so guilty.

Maybe he shouldn’t have been so harsh. Okay, yeah, he really shouldn’t have been so harsh. But Patton was going through a lot of feelings right now. Feelings that he couldn’t quite explain himself. This was pretty new and difficult. 

Patton looked the other in the eyes eventually, but after another moment he quickly turned his attention away. He could stand looking at him, his mind hyper-aware of all of the words they had just spoken. “Right… Okay…” It didn’t sound like sarcasm, more like disbelief. Patton wasn’t trying to be mean, really. It’s just how he was coming off at the moment.

Patton promised himself he would make it up to Logan later, but not right now.

“Actually--” Patton was going to regret this, but in the moment, he couldn’t think of anything better to say, “I think you can just leave now, if you want… I’ll ask someone else for a ride.”

Logan looked up, shocked, and a little hurt, “Huh? Oh-- Uh… Okay.”

Logan wanted to ask. He wanted to know so badly who would be giving Patton this ride, because he had a suspicion that he knew who it was going to be. But he had already overstepped too much… he couldn’t do more. Not now.

He stood up, now eye-level with the small window in the door across the lobby. Inside, he saw Kelly and the blue-haired girl. Just minutes ago they were joking about being grandparents to a bunch of weasels. What the hell had happened?

Quietly, barely even audible, Logan sighed and walked toward the door, “I am sorry for overstepping any boundaries today, Patton. Have fun.” He easily slipped back into his formal tone of speech, losing the contractions and more emotional tone of voice he’d developed over this short, yet eternally long week.

Logan could have begged. He could have asked for forgiveness yet another time. But instead, it seemed like Patton wanted Logan to back off, so that’s exactly what he did.

He walked toward his car and didn’t turn back to look at Patton through the glass walls of the veterinary office.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am s o s o r r y--  
> (hA, you t h o u g h t this was gonna be a fluffy chapter--)


	33. Chapter 33

Logan was silent on the drive home. Completely silent. Even his mind was empty.

He did not replay the conversation in his head. He did not think about his recently realized crush on Patton. He did not think about the years of torture Virgil faced at the hands of Dee, and how Patton was willingly walking right towards the same fate.

He focused on the road. He drove home safely and on time. He walked through the front door, greeting his father curtly when he saw he was home. It was never rare for Logan to be home this early, but it still felt strange to him. A week or so doesn’t seem like a long time, but to Logan, whose life has entirely shifted during that time,  _ everything _ felt strange.

Still, Logan answered his father’s questions when asked, responding in a monotone voice in response to the questions about his curfew and where he was when he had homework to do. Yes, it was 5:00 on a Saturday. Yes, that was his curfew. Logan didn’t care.

He walked into his room and the first thing he did wasn’t what he was expecting. He thought he would react. Maybe yelling, maybe pacing around, worrying endlessly, maybe staring in the mirror and berating himself and his stupidity for hours. For his stupidity, for his lack of understanding of emotions, his lack of understanding what Patton was feeling, for making Patton upset  _ again. _

No. Logan sat at his desk, shut off his phone, and got to work. He had a science project to do. Nothing else mattered, and clearly Patton didn’t want him around.

Patton would have fun at his party. He didn’t need Logan’s help no matter how much he worried. 

All he had left to do was focus on his work.

\------

When Logan walked out the door, Patton made sure to keep his eyes trained at the floor in front of his feet. No way was he going to look back at him! Of course he wanted to, but still--

Patton felt awful. Worse than that! Basically, he felt like his insides were just made of pure garbage. He knew he was going to apologize later, but for right now, he has a right to be mad. Or at least he thinks so.

There was a small voice in the back of his mind that told him he was doing a bad thing, but another was telling him that Dee deserved a chance, and Patton was happy to give him that chance. Patton was so confused. He didn’t know what to believe anymore. Because Logan had looked so… distraught. 

He shook his head to ignore the memory. No, he has made up his mind. Logan’s gone, and he needs to get a ride to the party. Patton pulled out his phone and opened it up. Obviously, he was still getting messages about the rumors regularly, but at least there weren’t as many of them anymore. 

His leg bounced up and down with nerves as he thought about his options. Virgil was probably too busy sleeping, and still, he didn’t even have a car. And he probably wouldn’t even drive Patton there anyway. Emile was most likely busy with his other friends today, along with Remy. Those two were practically joined at the hip, so if one of them was busy, the other would be. Still, they definitely wouldn’t want to take Patton either. And there was definitely no way he was going to ask Roman for help!

So, that really only gave him one option, the only other person he considered a good friend right now.

Patton brought out his phone to text Dee, planning to ask for a ride. Did he feel super guilty about it? Yes. Yes he did. Obviously, despite Patton’s best efforts, this small argument with Logan was sticking in his mind. He wasn’t going to get over it any time soon. And was Patton probably going to regret asking Dee for a ride? Most likely. Was he regretting it now though? No. Not in the slightest.

Patton wanted to prove not only to himself, but to everyone else, that Dee was a good person. Sure, he may lie a lot, and he may have… hurt a few people… sure he might have-- Okay this definitely isn't helping Patton’s thoughts. But that doesn’t matter! People can change, and everyone deserves a chance to get better.

And Dee seemed to really care the other day out in the hall when it was just the two of them! Dee actually bothered to listen to Patton and take his side almost immediately. Would a bad person really do something like that?

Besides, it was more than his actual friends seemed to do.

He was really hoping this party would help him take his mind off of things for a bit. He deserves a break from reality, doesn’t he?

So, with that thought giving him enough determination to get over the argument with Logan, to get over Emile and Remy and especially Virgil’s worried expressions, Patton pressed send.

_ [Hey Dee! I know it might seem like a bit too much to ask, but I walked to the vet alone to take care of my pets. I might not be able to get to the party in time if I don’t have a ride. So, if you’re free, do you mind picking me up?] _

“Huh,” Dee said after he read through the text, raising his eyebrow. He was surprised Patton would ask him for a ride.

After a few seconds, it clicked. Patton had mentioned he had plans today… and he seemed so nervous to tell Dee exactly what it was. He definitely hadn’t mentioned any specifics. 

Then again, they were in a huge crowd of people. So… this was just a guess, but maybe he didn’t want to fuel any rumors? Were these plans with  _ Logan _ ? Ooooh, it was just a guess, but it sure seemed like a good one. If Dee was right, and Patton was lying to him about walking there, and Logan wasn’t giving Patton a ride, then surely something must be going on.

Dee responded almost immediately after his realization.

_ [Yes of course, Pat! In fact, how about I just bring you to the party early? We were planning on starting it in about two hours.] _

He quickly sent another message, as more incentive to come early.

_ [If it helps, Roman is currently out of the house.] _

Patton had been feeling pretty anxious about Dee’s response. What if he said no? What if he ignored him? What if-- oh wait! That was a pretty quick response. Or at least faster than Patton thought it would be. He quickly responded.

_ [Sounds like a plan to me! Thanks Dee! :>] _

He had added the smiley face as a last-minute addition, just a friendly gesture to show he was appreciative of Dee. He could obviously do a lot more complex smiley faces, but this seemed simple enough for Dee. A friendship that’s slowly being repaired after years of barely even speaking to each other.

Dee smiled down at the text. Patton was such a sweet guy. This was surely going to be hilarious.

A few texts later and Dee knew the address of the vet clinic. He quickly thought of a plan, driving to Remus’ place to pick him up, before heading towards the vet with some food and drinks.

He told Remus the plan at a red light. They were going to pretend they were already out prepping for the night when they got Patton’s text. A few minutes later, they were pulling into the parking lot of the vet clinic. Dee sent Patton a quick text.

_ [We’re here. Yellow car parked right next to the door. We see you inside.] _

Luckily, the vets had finished with the weasels while Patton was waiting for Dee to pick him up. 

Gosh, what was he even going to do with these two? Fred is apparently a girl, and pregnant, and is going to have babies. It was still a lot to process.

Patton stood up, grabbing the cage on the chair next to him, and headed outside to meet up with Dee and Remus. Patton was happy, excited for tonight. When he saw Remus wave to him excitedly, Patton grinned and returned the wave. 

There was one small thing bothering Patton, though. Right now, he didn’t feel bad about Logan anymore. Maybe it was because Dee and Remus were here, but it was like the events of earlier didn’t even happen. They barely even existed in Patton’s mind, too preoccupied with the party and getting away from the rumors for a few hours.

“Oooh, nice pets!” Remus gawked at them, leaning around the passenger seat to look into the bars of the cage while Patton climbed into the back seat.

Dee smacked his arm, “What? Do they remind you of yourself?”

Remus grinned, “Oh, absolutely. Small, chaotic, slightly violent, and just a little bit illegal.”

Rolling his eyes, Dee elected to ignore Remus’ words. He’s gotten more than used to him by now. Still, he faced away from Dee and turned to Patton, offering, “We can stop by your house to drop them off, if you want.”

Patton couldn’t help but laugh slightly and Remus’ comments, not really sure if he was supposed to, since Dee didn’t really seem too amused. Then again. Patton didn’t really know how their friendship worked.

“Oh, uh… Yeah, I think they’d definitely prefer being at home,” Patton responded.

Fred and George had woken up from their small nap at all the noise, looking at Dee and Remus. George got in front of Fred and hissed at the two. Aw, that’s cute! He’s protecting his wife!

Though Patton had no clue why George thought of them as a threat.

Remus, obviously, went “Awww!” At the action, despite the hissing aimed directly at him. He then attempted to put his fingers through the bars to pet George.

“Remus, come on. At least ask,” Dee scolded him. Dee looked at the animals with some level of disgust, but didn’t let it show on his face. This night was going to be too fun to ruin because of some filthy animals.

Patton looked down at Fred and George. George was snarling and growling like crazy at Remus. Patton’s never seen anything like that, so he obviously took it as a bad sign. Did these types of animals normally do this when one was pregnant? George didn’t act that way with Logan, though, but Logan would probably know why--

Nope. No no, Patton’s not gonna think of Logan right now.

Patton took a quiet, deep breath before saying to Remus, “You know what? Yeah, sure. Be careful though, George really doesn’t look too happy right now.”

And although Patton was nervous, he really just needed a distraction. So, he tried not to flinch when Remus happily opened the cage. Remus literally did not even care that he nearly had his entire finger chewed off. He was grinning from ear to ear. These were his spirit animals.

Dee, on the other hand, was just driving, trying not to focus on Remus’ insanity.

“So, I know you live in this town, obviously, but you’re going to have to help me with the exact address,” Dee said.

Eventually, they reached Patton’s house, dropped off the babies (much to Remus’ sadness and the weasels’ delight), and they were off again, on their way to Remus’ house.

“So, Roman will come home from musical rehearsal around 10:30 tonight. We can hide you away for a few minutes if you want to go unseen, Pat,” Dee explained as they pulled into Remus’ driveway.

Patton immediately nodded to that plan, “Yeah, that sounds good to me.” Thank goodness they had thought about that. It would definitely be extremely awkward if he saw Roman again, especially since the last time they saw each other, Roman had-- Well, Patton doesn’t need a reminder of that night.

Well, maybe Patton could just leave the party before Roman shows up? Or maybe Patton just won’t want to leave. Who cares if Roman’s there? It shouldn’t be any of Roman’s business what Patton does!

When they walked through the door, they had about forty-five minutes left to spare until everyone else started to arrive. They prepared for the party, getting Patton as involved as possible. Bringing out soda and chips and whatnot (the alcohol would be raided from the basement later, but Patton certainly didn’t need to know about that). As they worked, Dee and Remus kept asking Patton questions, sounding as if they were happy to get to know him.

Dee was obviously being careful to avoid the topics of Roman and Logan, instead focusing on safer topics like his pets and his friends like Virgil or the other one that starts with an E. As if Dee cares to remember.

Soon enough, partygoers began to flood in around 7:00. Some early, some later, and most at least slightly tipsy and/or high from their “preparation” before the party began.

They almost all knew what was going to happen. Some people had brought games, like monopoly or uno (which, not only made this seem like a more innocent party for Patton’s sake, but was actually pretty fun and cutthroat when they’re all high, they’ve learned), cards against humanity, which definitely played into Dee’s plan of making Patton embarrassed. And, most importantly, they all came equipped with knowledge of the plan. Truth or dare, another seemingly innocent game to lure Patton into some sense of security, was sure to come. Even if they scared Patton into skipping out on dares, the truths were certain to be worse.

Dee introduced people as they came in, telling Patton about them. There was Noah, the school’s infamous music prodigy/hardcore druggie. Rachel, a pretty-well known slut around school. Obviously Beatrice was more well-known, but she was actually nice, so she didn’t fit into the plan. 

There weren’t a lot of people, probably about twenty at most. And, the three specific freshmen that had been allowed to join. Two of them were pretty mindless, named Vincent and Abigail. But Izzy was in the photography and videography club, so she was the official collector of footage of Patton’s embarrassment for the night. And there were a bunch of others whose names Dee barely knew, but through some connections, he knew they were down for some fun. Namely, embarrassing some poor little pure fluff ball.

Patton, the innocent minded person he was, though this party was going great so far! All of these people seemed really nice and welcoming, which he really appreciated.

After all of the people arrived, Patton mainly stayed on the couch and made conversation with anyone who talked with him. Which was, surprisingly, a lot of people. He was pretty shocked to see so many people actually interested in talking to him. Maybe this was proof Dee really wasn’t a bad guy at all!

Patton was having fun right now. All of his worries were gone, Logan and the argument hadn’t clouded up his mind one bit. It was calm for once.

Noah was the first one to bring up the elephant in the room, “So, Remus… the drinks?”

“Downstairs. Open bar, everyone!” Remus laughed, knowing damn well that the liquor belonged to his parents and definitely wasn’t supposed to be available.

Dee turned and whispered to Patton, “You don’t have to drink if you don’t want to. Usually, I don’t.” A blatant lie, but everyone here already knew to play along with it. Izzy also wouldn’t be drinking so that she could hold the camera straight.

Before Patton could even respond, Abigail brought out cards against humanity. While the cards were handed out, so were the drinks.

It was obvious Patton wasn’t going to drink at all, so he only took the cards that were offered to him. He knew pretty well that he could be really weird when under the influence. 

Abigail finished handing out every card, and then turned to Dee, “You go first,” She said.

He nodded and reached for a black card, reading, “What makes life worth living?” This one would probably be a great one. Everyone would probably play something hilarious, and then Patton would put “puppies” or something. From what Dee could remember, that may have actually been a card.

People started putting cards in the pile.

Patton looked through his cards. Granted, he really didn’t get the humor, so he picked a random one. You know what it said?

The card said _ ‘Auschwitz.’ _

Oh lord.

Patton waited to see what the other responses would be for this one. He kinda wondered how long this game would go on for. He would much rather play uno.

Dee picked up the cards and read through all of them, sounding rather unimpressed, “What makes life worth living? C _ rippling debt, Penis breath, Selling crack to children, Bitches, _ ” He paused temporarily to look at Patton’s reaction to the swear, and then continued to read the cards, “ _ Danny DeVito, Permanent Orgasm-Face Disorder, Auschwitz, The Rapture, and How far I can get my own penis up my butt. _ ”

He paused, and then looked at Remus with complete and utter disappointment, “That last one was yours, wasn’t it?” Remus’ growing grin and lack of verbal response told Dee enough, and he rolled his eyes.

Dee analyzed the cards and ended up choosing the card, _ ‘Selling crack to children,’ _ and after Dee spoke, Vincent raised his hand and happily took the card.

As Vincent picked up the next black card and read it aloud (“Click here for blank!”) Dee thought about the cards he had received. There had been nothing too pure, really, except for Danny DeVito, maybe. Does Patton seriously not know about most of these things? Like, at all?

This would be even more fun than he thought.

Patton took a moment to look through his cards. After hearing most of those responses, he decided to choose the best one to fit this kind of humor.  _ ‘Poor life choices.’ _

Been there, done that. Actually no-- been there, stayed there. Now lives there. Patton has definitely experienced some poor life choices.

Vincent read through the cards, “Click here for…  _ White privilege, a sad handjob, poor life choices, horse meat, therapy, hobos, anal, your weird brother, and balls. _ ”

He thought for a moment, and then he ended up choosing, said aloud to the group, “Who said  _ ‘Poor life choices’? _ ”

Patton, and pretty much everyone else there, was surprised to see his card had been chosen. He raised his hands, a slight smile on his face. Not gonna lie, Patton felt pretty proud!

He chose the next black card, reading it aloud in a somewhat quiet and nervous voice, “What’s fun until it gets weird?”

Well then. Dee’s face actually hurt with the grin that had spread across his face at the sound of that card. Immediately, his eyes locked onto the card in his hand that said _ ‘My sex life.’ _

Wow, this game sure was a blessing.

Remus on the other hand, was giggling at the card he had chosen. _ ‘Touching a pug right on his penis.’ _

Everyone else put in their cards, and waited for Patton to read them aloud.

“Okay, uhm… What’s fun until it gets weird?” Patton started, reading through the cards and laying them out as he went along, cringing through every single one, getting worse and worse, “ _ God, Liberals, Getting drugs off the street and into my body, Gay conversion therapy, Murder, Touching a pug right on his penis, Having anuses for eyes, and-- _ ”

Patton hesitated on the last one slightly, but said it after only a second of pause. It was just a game, right? “Uh,  _ My sex life. _ ” 

Trying to ignore the small, shared glances around the room and the quiet giggles from the corner, Patton took his time to make a decision. Dee had turned around, pretending to glare at them for Patton’s sake.

Patton smiled to himself when he saw Dee stand up for him. See! At least Dee had some common sense. If only Logan were here, he would see that Dee actually-- Waaaait. No no, he’s not supposed to be thinking about that right now. He focused on the cards again.

Eventually, Patton made his choice, and to everyone’s shock, it was  _ Remus’ _ card. Immediately, Remus shot his hand up in the air and cheered. Excitedly, practically bouncing in his seated position on the floor, Remus read the next card, “Lifetime presents blank: the story of blank.”

Patton looked through his cards, and thought that he had literally found the jackpot. His cards were  _ ‘Daddy issues’  _ and _ ‘Luke Skywalker.’ _

And after he placed his cards down, he pulled out his phone. Totally not checking if he had any messages or calls from anyone! Definitely not.

Remus read through all of the cards and ended up stuck between quite a few of them. They were all just very chaotic.

He ended up going with “Lifetime presents  _ Inserting a Mason Jar into my Anus: _ the story of  _ Mike Pence. _ ”

Dee looked at Patton and noticed he was on his phone. Since they were sitting right next to each other, of course he saw Patton open his text messages and click on Logan’s name. No. No way in hell was this going to be ruined. Might as well jump in now.

“Well, as much fun as this is, I’m bored. Truth or Dare?” He suggested.

Everyone instantly got excited and started to clean up their cards (which basically just meant throwing the cards back into the box and pushing it aside with the giant mess of cards inside) before making an even larger circle where more people began to sit down, preparing for the new game.

Patton had looked up from his phone once Dee made the suggestion. He wanted to sort out the cards (since it was a complete and utter mess), but the box was pushed away before he could even try. Still, he was supposed to be having fun! So, he adjusted where he was sitting to make room for all of the new people who wanted to join.

Patton saw no issue with truth or dare, especially considering the fact that most of these people seemed really nice. So they wouldn’t be too extreme, would they?

As he sat there, Patton continued to look through his phone for any sign of something. Maybe Logan really was just going to leave him alone? Oh gosh, he was starting to regret being so harsh earlier. Maybe he should text Logan first?

No no no. Can’t give in like that. That would mean Logan won, and he was right, and Patton needed help. Can’t have that.

Dee decided the best course of action was to let the best start first, “Remus, you go.”  
Again bouncing excitedly with the opportunity to participate, Remus gleefully clapped his hands and let a devilish smirk cross his face, “Alriiiight… Noah. Truth or dare?”

“Dare,” He responded immediately, with zero hesitation.

“Open your favorite porn site on your phone and show us all a video. Your choice.”

Noah grinned, clearly already high, and began to look through his phone until he settled on some sort of BDSM gay porn thing. He sat it down in front of him, showing the phone to the rest of the circle so everyone could see.

Completely ignoring the video and the antics of these crazy people (seriously, you have to be insane to say dare with no hesitation when it’s  _ Remus _ giving you the dare). Patton waited until he was called on to participate, instead focusing on what he was supposed to do about Logan.

He knew he shouldn’t worry, because Logan probably wasn’t worried, but that just made Patton even more worried! Triple worried!

_ Should I ask him what he’s doing? _ Patton thought,  _ Should I let him know that I’m okay? Wait no gosh darn it! What does he care?  _ This was difficult!

Dee glanced at Patton again, noticing that he was once again looking at his phone. Finally, Dee decided to act.

“You’re staring down at your phone pretty intensely. Is it too embarrassing?” He acted sympathetic, “I can probably get him to turn the video off, if you want.”

Patton looked up from his phone when Dee started talking. Gosh, that’s right. He’s supposed to be having fun here! He opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a girl speaking up--

One of the people began to glance at Patton, noticing his hunched over posture and concerned expression. It was for Logan, but this kid didn’t know that. She misunderstood.

“Aww, he’s embarrassed!” She giggled, talking loudly. She clearly gestured toward Patton with her hand, which had a cup of some sort of alcohol in it.

“Wait, huh? Embarrassed of  _ that? _ ” Patton questioned. He didn’t understand why they would automatically assume that, considering he wasn’t even looking at it.

Maybe it’s Patton’s own fault. He shouldn’t be worrying about Logan, he should be more involved and actually play the game. It was just really hard for him to do so right now, what with all the worrying…

“Mhm! You were looking away from it. What? Is it a kink of yours or something? We all already know you’re gay, so the fact that it’s gay porn probably doesn’t help either,” The girl explained, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Dee glanced around. This isn’t exactly how he planned the embarrassment and humiliation to go, but it’s not like he was going to stop them.

“Wh-- No! That’s not it at all!” Patton was quick to defend himself, honestly being a little offended. He obviously had no clue what this girl was even talking about, but he was definitely embarrassed now. Who wouldn’t be!?

Also, who does this girl think she is? She's clearly super young. Isn’t she way past her bedtime or something? Of course Patton wouldn’t say anything like that, though. At least not to her face.

Dee gave her a quick (very fake) glare, and she pretended to back off, aware of the plan. She giggled and said, “Sure, alright.”

The video ended about ten seconds later, and Noah stood to give everyone a very over-exaggerated bow. He sat back down and asked the next victim truth or dare.

The game continued for a little longer, with people doing things like taking off someone’s bra with just their teeth, going into a closet blindfolded and trying to get changed with only the items available in the closet, taking ice cubes and dumping them on themselves, going outside in the cold air in nothing but underwear, etc… and for some truths, people answered questions like whether they were a top or bottom, their worst sexual experiences, and whether they spit or swallow.

Granted, there were some virgins in the group, but whenever anyone learned about that they were laughed at, but were soon given different questions or dares. These people weren’t that heartless.

While the game passed, Patton tried his hardest to ignore his phone. On occasion, he would glance at it, and maybe turn it on to check if there were any messages, but that’s it! He was trying his best not to have Logan cloud his every single thought. Patton just felt so guilty about the argument now. But thankfully, the game was doing a pretty good job at distracting him, until--

“Patton, truth or dare?”

It was the girl who had talked to him earlier. It was now her turn, and… well, shit.

Patton’s initial thought was to go with truth, but seeing all of the questions these people were asking worried him. If anything, the dares seemed more harmless. And who knows, maybe this girl will actually try to make it harmless? It’s only fair for accusing him earlier.

“Uhm… dare,” He replied, a familiar sense of nervousness filling the pit of his stomach.

Many options crossed the girl’s mind. There were a lot of things she could make this guy do.

“I dare you…”

She thought for a second more, carefully considering what to say. She glanced at Dee, and he gave her a small, barely noticeable nod. Seems the plan is starting, and she gets to pull the trigger. Lucky her!

“I dare you to tell me if the rumors about your friend Logan are true. And if they aren’t… would you consider it?” She grinned.

That was… not as bad as Patton was expecting, honestly. Cause like, that was a super easy question! If anything, it was pretty much harmless. So, he answered quite confidently and simply, “No, the rumors aren’t true about him. Or me. We’re just friends.”

He hadn’t answered the last part though. Cause, psssh, why would he need to? They’re just friends and whatever. Besides, Logan definitely wouldn’t even want to. He has a crush on someone! Which was still a little mind-blowing to Patton, considering just how little Logan ever talked about stuff like that--

Patton’s avoidance of the question got people curious. Especially Dee, because he was genuinely very, very curious.

Dee was definitely an expert in reading facial expressions, and he could tell by Patton’s that he was hiding something. It was a mix of guilt, curiosity, and denial. Huh, interesting.

The girl, yet again, became brave enough to speak up, “Wait, you didn’t answer the second part!”

Patton was silent for a moment before smiling and saying, “Well, I mean, of course not. Cause we’re just friends and stuff, so…” The fact that Patton even had a  _ second _ of hesitation made him feel pretty stupid. Logan was always there for him, and had quickly become such a good friend to him! So, friends.

Patton was quick to change the subject, because no way in heck was he going to go into more details, “It’s my turn now to ask someone, right?”

Everyone was glancing around at each other. They could tell something was up with Patton’s hesitation to answer. Dee’s facade slipped for a second as he was clearly unprepared for that. Did Patton _ actually _ have a thing with Logan? Or did he at least  _ want _ to?

Dee shook his head and slipped right back into character, “Yes, it’s your turn, Patton.”

Patton looked around the circle. He didn’t know many people here, so he decided to just with his immediate thought, so people would take attention away from him.

“Remus, truth or dare?”

“Dare, obviously,” Remus responded. No one was surprised by that.

Even though Patton was quickly moving on from what just happened, and all of the people simply went along with it, Dee continued to watch him carefully. Maybe this could be even more interesting than he initially thought.

Patton thought for a moment. He knew Remus would literally do anything that came his way, but still, Patton didn’t want to be too mean. Then again, he also needed something that would distract the rest of these people for a bit.

Oh! He has one.

“I dare you to jump off the roof with a bunch of pillows and duct tape wrapped around you.”

“OOH YES!” Remus screeched with excitement, jumping up and beginning to run around the house to collect the materials. After a minute or so, he was running out the front door, and everyone quickly followed.

Remus began to climb up to the part of the house where there were two floors, but Dee quickly smacked his arm and pointed to the lower level. Remus pouted, but Dee’s glare and his own mind told him it was  _ probably _ the better option not to die.

He started climbing and quickly made it to the top, pillows already secured.

And then, suddenly, a car pulled into the driveway and Roman stepped out.


	34. Chapter 34

The crowd that was standing around the wall of the house, looking up at the scene about to unfold, quieted down and turned their heads almost completely in sync as they heard the car pull into the driveway, and some let out very audible gasps when they saw who had stepped out of the car. Some of the dumber ones even turned back to face Patton!

Patton immediately glanced past all of the people around him, and--

_SHIT!_

He ducked back behind the rest of these people, and for once he was so, _so_ thankful for how short he was compared to everyone else.

Roman’s voice rung across the crowd, sounding annoyed and mildly concerned as he yelled up to Remus, “Re, what in the actual living fuck are you doing!?” It was pretty easy for him to tell what was happening, anyway.

Patton shrunk further into the crowd when he heard Roman’s voice, and started looking around for Dee. Oh god, Patton was scared out of his mind. He had no clue what to do or where to hide.

“Jumping off a roof, obviously! Truth or dare,” Remus responded, gesturing around him as if this situation was normal and as if those few words explained everything. And then Remus jumped. 

Patton’s ears were filled with the cheering of the people around him, even a small cheer for Remus to do a flip, and he suddenly realized he had tuned everything out in his panicked search for Dee, but he suddenly turned back towards Remus in time to see him raise his head from the ground after a loud, painful sound. And yet, Remus was grinning like a madman, like that was the most fun he’s had in his life.

And then Remus looked up further, and briefly saw Patton shrinking further into the crowd before Roman was stepping in front of his brother, concerned, yet annoyed. As much as Roman doesn’t want to admit it, he _does_ care about his brother, and seeing him jump off of the roof like that did give him a small heart attack.

Of course Roman knew his brother was stupid, but he didn’t think he was _that_ stupid. However, when he saw him moving, Roman wasn’t so worried. “I’m not even gonna bother asking…” Roman mumbled, completely dumbfounded by his brother’s stupidity.

Now, see, Remus wasn’t completely heartless, so when he saw Patton making his way back to the front door to hide inside, he thought he might as well keep some focus on himself so Roman has no chance of seeing Patton.

“What are you doing here, anyway?” Remus asks, sitting up into a cross-legged position, still on the ground as he spoke up to Roman, “Isn’t it pretty early for you to get home?”

“Rehearsal ended early,” Roman explained. It was clear Remus had some sort of little party going on, and honestly, Roman wanted no part of that.

Finally, Remus stood up and dusted himself off. He glanced around the crowd and saw that Patton had successfully made it inside. That was good, at least. Remus turned back to Roman and said, “Welp! We’re all gonna head back inside right now, so you should probably go back to hiding in your room like a pussy. Have fun doing nothing, bro!”

And then Remus ran back inside, leading the group of people in like a wild, rampaging herd. Dee followed at the end of the crowd, walking gracefully, unlike the rest. As he walked back inside, being the last one through the door, he looked at Roman. Dee stared directly into his eyes for a solid second before turning around and closing the door.

That second sure seemed to last longer than a second, because a cold chill was definitely sent up Roman’s spine when he saw Dee stare at him. It was so creepy. This is exactly why he never hangs around Remus or his super weird friends.

Roman had already planned on hiding out in his room until this little get-together was over, so really it’s not like he took Remus’ words to heart. If anything, Roman would be more than happy to stay in there even when this party was long past finished.

When Patton had entered the house earlier, he had chosen to hide in a small closet along one of the hallways that had the washer and dryer in it, but plenty of room for him to hide. Patton was so grateful he knew this house pretty well. He was still in there now, and the closet was pretty close to the stairs, so when he heard a single set of footsteps go up the stairs, he waited another ten or so seconds before he decided to step out. 

Patton wasn’t sure if he should leave now or stay. He could very easily leave but… he knew Roman would most likely be staying in his room for the rest of the night. So, what’s his excuse?

Except, the moment Patton stepped out, everyone cheered. People were saying things like, “You stayed! Man, you’re brave,” and “If my ex was in the same house as me, I’d be gone in a heartbeat. Damn.”

Dee then stepped up to Patton and patted him on the back. “Seriously, pretty impressive given the… circumstances,” Dee said to him. He then turned back to everyone and asked, “Back to the game?”

Everyone, yet again, started cheering and made their way back into the living room to get back into the circle. Remus kicked it off again by daring some poor innocent girl to eat three spoonfuls of mustard and chili powder.

And Patton had gone back with them, because the second he got that positive reaction, he grinned and blushed, embarrassed by the praise and yet, so happy with the sudden acceptance he seemed to have. He obviously wasn’t expecting anything negative from the group, but the reaction they did give was definitely unexpected. 

Patton liked this. He liked these people, and they seemed to like him. It made him want to stay even more. 

After a few more rounds of people asking for truths and dares, it rounded back to some stoner sophomore that most of them barely knew. He was here for the party, not for the plan, but this kid was going to help them all unknowingly anyway.

“Uhh, Patton, was it?” He was very clearly high, “Truth or dare?”

Considering his last dare wasn’t really quite as harmful as he’d expected, Patton thought this one wouldn’t be too bad either. Not only that, but most people here were either drunk or high, so chances are, they won’t even remember much of what happens.

“Dare,” Patton said, quite confidently. He seemed pretty much prepared for anything. Not nearly as confident as Remus when it comes to this stuff, but still--

“Uhh… hmm,” the sophomore paused, thinking. His mind was clearly lagging behind, but he was determined to think up something good. After a moment, he grinned as his ideas caught up to his brain, and he said, “You… you’re gonna drink tonight. And, it’s gonna be that… you take a shot whenever we guess…” He paused, thinking again, “Whenever we guess anything naughty about you correctly. Like kinks and stuff. Like a drinking game!”

And although the color had drained from Patton’s face at the idea, the kid grinned at his accomplishment of saying something coherent, and judging by everyone’s excited reactions, it seemed like it was a pretty good dare! He stood up and grabbed some alcohol, not really caring to know what it was, and handed it to Patton along with a shot glass. 

Now, Patton definitely didn’t drink a lot. Basically never. Sure, there were some occasional times, but that was mostly because Roman was there!

And another thing, kinks!? Seriously? What happened to the innocent and easy questions for him? If Patton had to choose, he’d prefer to jump off a roof like Remus did than do this.

Everyone else seemed super excited about it. Patton can’t just back out unless he wants them all hating him. Who knows, maybe they won’t even guess anything right and he’ll be fine?

After all of the rumors and word spreading around, people knew that they knew almost nothing about this supposedly innocent fluff ball. Was he really innocent? So, even if people believed the rumors or not, they were all curious to know. This was certainly an interesting way to find out.

The girl from before, who had been so brave to speak up earlier, began, “Okay, I guess this is my chance to get the truth. BDSM, yes or no?”

Well, Patton barely even knew what that was, so it was a no. He knew some things about it, maybe? But basically, he just had no clue. So he shook his head, just to finally get this girl to stop asking. “No. Can you drop that idea now?”

“Fine, fine,” She complied. Looking around the room, she noticed the next person who had a question.

It was another girl, seemingly a little older than most of the other people here. Probably a junior or senior. She asked, “What about… just being dominated in general? You’re a total bottom, aren’t you?”

Patton didn’t even bother answering that one. He stared down at the cup, and, already having made up his mind about doing this, decided to ignore the heat in his cheeks and the embarrassment flooding his brain as he picked up the cup, poured some from the bottle, and drank it.

Well, a lot of other people have done a lot more embarrassing things at this party already, so Patton shouldn’t even be too worried, should he? He tried convincing himself this was just a part of the game.

And Patton still hadn’t said anything, because honestly the answer to that question was way too obvious, anyway.

People had cheered when he took his first drink, and the girl who had asked the question got a few high fives as a result.

Next was some guy in the back, “Is height a turn on for you?” He knew about Roman and the supposed thing with Logan, so, this wasn’t too far of a stretch.

Patton honestly needed to consider that for a moment. In all honesty, most people were taller than him anyway, so if he ever liked someone, chances are they were taller than him. Still, Patton didn’t care much about height anyway. He answered, “I’d have to say no to that one,” and he sounded honest.

“Huh, that was unexpected,” The guy in the back responded.

Someone else decided to pitch in, “Have you ever had a hickey before?”

That question had once again got Patton’s face heating up. He had been with Roman long enough to have more hickeys than he could count. He poured himself another shot, and when he was done, he commented, “If I had to take a shot for each one I ever got… you guys would have to send me to a hospital.”

Some people laughed at that, actually finding the comment pretty funny. Then again, it was _Roman_ that Patton had been with, so… 

Another person spoke up, “Is your neck a sensitive spot?”

That was actually something Patton didn’t even need to think about. He knew which parts of himself were sensitive and which ones weren’t. So, he shook his head no. All these questions were pretty easy so far, and he’s only had to take two shots. What was he even drinking? No clue.

“Okay, okay,” The stoner boy who had given the dare spoke up, “We all get one question. That way this doesn’t last forever.”

Everyone nodded, agreeing, and someone else chipped in, “That last one was a good question. We should keep asking stuff like that!” The people agreed, and everyone began listing places, leaving a few seconds in between so that Patton could respond with either saying no or taking a shot.

“Ears?”

“Hair? Do you like getting it pulled?”

“Your back?”

“What about nipples?”

“...Thighs?”

Patton didn’t use those seconds that were granted to him. Instead, he waited for the list to end before pouring himself two shots. He definitely wasn’t going to tell them which ones were guessed right, because it’s his business. Most of the people had used up their questions for that list, so this was almost over, thankfully. Maybe this wasn’t going to be as bad as he thought.

Or… that could just be the alcohol talking, staring to kick in. Maybe both? He wasn’t so sure anymore.

Everyone was now glancing around, wondering if there were any people left with questions.

Someone, finally, spoke up. It was Izzy, the girl who had been chosen to document the events of this party, behind her phone, aimed directly at Patton. It was clear she had been recording. Dee and Remus sat alongside her, watching with amusement as she asked her question.

“Did Roman take your virginity, Patton?” She knew that the rumors were fake. She heard Patton’s side of the story from Dee and Remus. She knew that Roman was a terrible boyfriend, and Patton was happy to get rid of him. So, her tone of voice was particularly scathing as she asked, “Do you wish you could have it back? Perhaps give it to someone else? Change history and keep it away from someone who hurt you so _badly?_ ”

She was grinning, her glasses glinting in the dim light that shone through the window in the otherwise dim living room. And her phone was aimed directly at Patton.

The room went completely silent. Everyone stared at Patton. The plan had been executed perfectly.

They had a few wonderful minutes of video to share with the world.

Remus grinned like mad, while Dee had a calm, but triumphant expression. He stared at Patton. Everyone stared at Patton, waiting for a response.

And Patton stayed absolutely silent. He took everything in. The silence, except for the faint sounds of crickets through the window. The eyes all trained on him, the shocked expressions. He looked back and forth between Dee and Remus and this random girl. Who cares about her. He looked at Dee as realization dawned and everything clicked into place.

Patton continued to stare, almost in a haze where his mind supplied nothing, no thoughts at all, at Dee’s triumphant expression. Then Patton quietly, faintly answered, “Yes.” He didn’t specify which question he was answering, but Patton just looked so… terrified. Betrayed and terrified.

Quickly, he snapped himself out of the staring and stood up, “I’m gonna-- be right back…” Without saying another word, he started making his way to the bathroom. As he exited the room, he heard the faint sound of laughter.

Patton made his way up the stairs, trying and failing to ignore the laughter. They were all making fun of him. They had recorded everything he said. This was funny to them?? But he thought-- Dee had been so nice. He had thought he was a friend! _He had been so nice!_

Patton made it into the bathroom, closing and locking it before slumping down to the floor. He removed his glasses to wipe his tear-filled eyes. His throat began to ache and his breath was shaky. Patton was shaking.

Through all of this, he had only one thought:

_Logan was right._

Patton should have listened. He should have listened to him when he had the chance. He was so stupid to even consider showing up here! Not only was he completely embarrassed, but now that alcohol would kick in any minute and he wouldn’t even be able to think--!

\------

And yeah, everyone was laughing.

“Nice going there, little one,” Dee congratulated Izzy. He turned his attention to Remus when he spoke up.

“We found our successor?”

“Of course. We’re seniors. Someone’s gotta continue our legacy, and I believe we found the perfect little mastermind.” Dee smirked, placing his hand on her head and messing up her hair. She grinned up at him excitedly.

“Sounds like fun! If this is a normal thing for you, then I’m definitely in.”

Izzy sat with the others, happy with their congratulatory messages, high fives, and smiles. She had done well by these seniors, and she was glad for it. It sure is one way to make sure you’re accepted in high school.

She sat with Dee and Remus, happily editing the video into a nice little clip of all of the questions, and began to airdrop it to everyone in the house. This way, everyone had it and could begin sharing.

It also meant Patton would receive it. And isn’t that just some wonderful salt on the wound?

As Patton was trying to get himself together, he heard his phone go off. His instant thought and hope was that it was Logan. He opened it up, only to see what it actually was. In that moment, his heart dropped. That was it.

He ignored the video completely, going into his contacts and clicking Logan’s name. He hoped Logan wasn’t still mad about that argument. He really hoped Logan wasn’t mad enough to ignore him. Patton was praying he would pick up.

Meanwhile, since the video had dropped to everyone in the house, it also appeared to have dropped to Roman as well, who had been up in his room watching some Netflix show he had recently gotten into. He was surprised to see it was a video of Patton. And in his living room? He was at the party?

Roman watched a few minutes of the video. He didn’t reach the end, but he saw enough to have terror flood through him. Why did they do this to Patton? Oh god, Roman hoped he was still here. Quickly, and without much thought, Roman left his room and headed downstairs.

When Roman entered the room, the silence came back again. Everyone looked a little panicked, and kept glancing around nervously at each other. Some people even decided to grab their stuff and book it out of the back door. No way in hell were they going to get caught for this.

All that did was make everyone who stayed look even more suspicious.

The people who did stay were, obviously Dee, Remus, and Izzy, as well as some of the people who were too drunk or stoned out of their minds to even notice Roman’s arrival. There were also some freshmen who stayed to prove how “cool” and “brave” they were to the cool seniors, Dee and Remus. They definitely looked terrified, though.

Roman watched as people began flooding out of the door. He thought that was a smart choice. He waited a moment to see if anyone else would leave, and when he realized they wouldn’t, Roman chose not to care. He came up to Dee and Remus, although specifically talking to Remus.

“What in the actual fuck were you morons thinking!?” Roman saw the video. He knew what they did. Why would Patton even _be_ here if these two weren’t planning _something?_ “Do you have any idea what the fuck you just _did?_ Of course not, right!? Because when do you two _idiots_ ever think!?”

Meanwhile, back in the bathroom, Patton hadn’t gotten a response. So he called again. And again. And _again._ He called a total of _twelve times_ now. It was… sad.

Remus shrugged, and Dee captured Roman’s attention by speaking up, “Oh, trust me. We thought this out in excruciating detail, Roman.” His devilish smirk was laid out upon an otherwise calm expression.

Izzy smiled from where she was between them. She was glad to be a part of this, even though Roman was much more intimidating up close. There’s no way he’d hurt her, at least physically. She was small, smaller than Patton, and Roman could probably toss her around like a ragdoll if he really wanted to. But everyone knew Roman was too much of a softie to actually hurt anyone here. 

Well, maybe.

Roman didn’t really care about Dee, or whoever that girl was. Frankly, he didn’t care. He was mostly going off on Remus because he’s his brother. But then Dee decided to speak up. Roman turned to Dee, “I wasn’t talking to you,” Roman glared, his voice threatening, before turning back to Remus with the same tone of voice, “Have your friends leave, _now._ ”

By then, Patton had completely given up on trying to call Logan. He threw his phone down in defeat, letting tears fall down his cheeks. Why is it that something bad always had to happen to him… it’s like he just wasn’t meant to be happy. His immediate thought was, obviously, that Logan was still mad at him and was doing this on purpose.

Remus quickly gathered the others, “I’ll be heading over to Dee’s for a victory sleepover. Izzy, you coming?”

She nodded and followed the two out, and they were all followed by everyone else. The house was now empty.

And then suddenly, the dark living room was lit up momentarily by Roman’s phone, a text from Remus. Because, although Remus was happy to make Dee happy, he still wasn’t heartless. And maybe Roman could actually do something right for once.

_[Patton’s in the bathroom, by the way.]_

Roman stared down at the text in the empty, quiet living room. Patton was still here? Roman would have assumed he would have left the instant they shared the video. Roman walked up the stairs and down the hallway before he was face to face with the bathroom door that was across from Remus’ room. He knocked, knowing he startled Patton due to the small, scared gasp. 

Roman had no clue what to say right now. He knew damn well that he was the last person Patton wanted to see right now.

\------

Logan continued to work on his project. He had been working for about four or so hours now. And he had barely been able to focus the entire time.

It started as anger about Patton not listening to him, but that was quickly corrected after like, a minute of genuine thought. It developed into anger at Dee for tricking Patton, and that lasted about ten minutes before Logan realized Patton could _still_ be right. That made Logan even more angry at Dee. And angry at himself.

Logan went through phases, and eventually around hour two and a half, he was exhausted with being angry. He began to feel guilty, and realized quickly enough that he needed to apologize to Patton. He needed to tell him he was sorry for not believing him.

Now that Logan thought back on it, he hated what he had said in the moment back at the vet. Sure, what he said was true. He was so upset at himself for making Patton upset again, and now, thinking back on it, it merely sounded like he was making Patton feel guilty. And although he didn’t intend to do that, intentions don’t matter when it already happened.

He was so concerned for Patton. And he shouldn’t have been so over the top in his desperation to keep him from getting hurt. But still, how could that be possible? How could he _not_ be concerned for Patton? Even before he realized his completely illogical crush on Patton, he knew he cared for him. That’s what friends do, right? They’re worried for one another when they get in dangerous situations?

This was way too complicated.

He continued to work on his project, keeping his mind off of Patton for the time being. He was fine. Everything was going to be fine.

He only had a little more work to do before he would permit himself to turn his phone back on.

\------

First things first, Roman was thinking he should probably get Patton out of the bathroom. Because one, he was thinking it would be better if Patton saw how worried he was, and two, Roman just wanted to see him.

“Pat, you’re gonna need to come out of the bathroom eventually. When you do, I’m gonna be standing right out here. I’m not leaving until you come out. I wanna talk to you…” Roman sounded concerned, and he desperately hoped Patton would listen. Clearly, he needed comfort.

It took a moment before Roman’s phone lit up with another text, this time from Patton.

_[Well I’m not coming out until you leave]_

Roman was slightly annoyed by that, but he ignored it. “Okay, fine. I’m leaviiinnggg!” He said, taking a few steps down the hallway and hiding in the room next door. He waited to see if Patton actually stepped out.

It was a couple seconds before he heard a click from the door. Roman peeked out of the room slightly and saw Patton down the hall. Roman stepped out of the room, still keeping his distance just in case, and spoke up, “Patton--”

Immediately, Patton turned around, startled, and let out a small, surprised yelp. Well, that was to be expected.

“Okay, wait--” Roman started, but Patton didn’t even give him a chance to finish his sentence, instead trying to book it back into the bathroom. Roman was quicker though, and stood in front of the door, “Wait! Wait just list--” Nope. Patton was ready to throw himself down the stairs if he needed to.

Instead, Roman grabbed his arm, lightly, but with enough force to bring Patton into his room. “No! Nooooo!” Patton was just being dramatic. No, he wasn’t in pain.

When Roman finally got Patton inside, he closed his door, “Patton! Relax!”

Patton took a few steps back, and Roman didn’t get any closer, staying near his door. He didn’t want to freak Patton out or scare him. Roman let Patton calm down a bit before talking to him.

“I saw they recorded you…” Roman’s voice was soft, and he was clearly concerned, “Thought you were smarter than to trust that asshole Dee…” As Roman spoke, Patton didn’t say a word. Roman continued, “I’m sorry they did that to you. You don’t deserve it…” 

Patton was avoiding eye contact. Roman sighed.

\------

And finally, Logan finished his project. He let out a long, relieved sigh. It was done, finally.

And now he could stop his worrying because he would turn his phone on and see no messages from Patton and everything would be _fine._ He would not be the first to send something to Patton. He’s learned to keep his distance after all of this.

Then he turned on his phone and was blasted with a barrage of notification alerts. Texts and calls and even a _facebook message._ All of them were from people from his school. He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion (and worry, but he was trying to ignore that until he found out what it even was).

All of them were links to the same video. It didn’t matter right now, he didn’t bother to click any. Because he saw twelve alerts from his phone app.

He clicked it and his heart stopped.

\------

Roman knew Patton wasn’t going to speak to him, but he continued. “You don’t have to stand, you could sit down. I saw they made you drink, so…” He didn’t really think Patton would take him up on his offer, but Roman still said it to be nice.

However, to his surprise, Patton actually did take a seat. Patton sat on Roman’s bed, still staring at the floor to avoid eye contact, not saying a word. Roman was fine with that.

“Thanks,” Roman said, letting himself smile at the very small act of trust Patton had just done, “You don’t have to explain anything, but if you wanna talk, I’m here…” Roman walked over, slowly, just to make sure Patton didn’t freak out. Instead of sitting on his bed, Roman sat on the floor, leaning against the bed.

It was silent for a while, but suddenly, Roman heard it. He looked up with wide eyes and saw Patton crying. Roman was quick to get himself up and onto the bed, but when he tried to comfort Patton, he scooted away.

Roman stayed on the bed, leaning away from him slightly. He didn’t say anything, he didn’t try to get closer again. Roman gave Patton his space and waited until he was needed. Roman let out a small sigh. It sucked seeing Patton like this.

\------

Logan listened to the voicemails, he heard Patton crying, talking incoherently about how he was right, about how he needed to be picked up. After only two voicemails, Logan needed no more incentive.

He had been right. Normally a thought like that would make Logan feel triumphant. He loved being right.

Not now. When he thought “I was right,” the only emotion he could feel was fear. Complete and utter fear. He was so terrified of what they could have done. That must be what the video is.

Hesitantly, Logan clicked on a text message, which directed him to a random student’s instagram page. Logan watched, and slowly, as the video progressed, his expression morphed into one of complete horror. And then he reached the end. He heard the cold, heartless voice from behind the phone. Heard the snickers of Dee and Remus nearby.

But first things first… Patton. Patton was all that mattered right now. Their argument didn’t matter, Dee didn’t matter, Remus didn’t matter, and neither did this mystery girl.

Logan quickly typed out a text to Patton, foregoing his usual correct spelling and punctuation in his urgency to hear from him.

_[are you okay? Patton please tell me youre okay i saw the video]_

Roman glanced over at Patton when he saw him reaching for his phone. He saw he got a message, but Roman couldn’t see who it was from. Right after Patton had read the text, Patton just seemed to start crying even more. Roman’s instant thought was that it was a text from Dee or Remus.

“Hey… hey, Pat… don’t-- don’t cry…” Roman tried, instinctually leaning toward Patton, but holding himself back when he remembered just how much Patton didn’t want his help.

Patton put his hands over his face. The reason he was crying was not only due to embarrassment, but also guilt. He should have listened to Logan. He should’ve never gotten mad at him. He should’ve-- his thoughts had been interrupted when he felt himself get pulled.

Roman had pulled Patton into a hug. No one really said anything, until Patton only started crying even more. He wasn’t resisting this time. Roman put one hand over Patton’s head, trying to comfort him. He had no idea it had been Logan who texted Patton.

Logan stared down at his phone, waiting for a response. When he didn’t get anything back, he began to panic even more. He typed out another text.

_[please i know youre angry at me and rightfully so, but please just respond so i know youre okay, youre the only thing im worried about]_

Patton felt his phone vibrate and the small notification noise accompanying it once more. He pulled out of the hug and looked down at the message before actually opening it, reading through it with tears in his eyes. He clicked on the screen, ready to type out his response, before he heard Roman speak.

“…You still talk to him?” Roman had seen who it was when Patton opened the message. Roman stared at Patton, who appeared to be frozen.

Patton didn’t write back just yet. He slowly lowered his phone to his side, but it was still in his hand. He glanced up at Roman. The two were silent. Although Patton couldn’t see what he was typing, he tried as best as he could. He sent two messages, still looking at Roman.

_[Roan]_

_[jere]_

Logan looked at the texts, wondering what the hell that even meant.

“Roan jere??” Logan asked aloud, trying to decipher what it was that Patton had meant by that.

He thought through the situation. He was at Remus’ house, unless he had left… no, it’s only been a few minutes since all of those videos went up, and from the years of visiting Roman as a friend, he knew that the direction Patton walked at the end of the video led to the stairs, not the front door.

So he was still inside, and…

It clicked.

Roman was with Patton. And Roman had probably seen Logan’s text.


	35. Chapter 35

Patton didn’t say a word.

Instinctively, he backed up from Roman slightly, his expression frozen in fear. He silently shut his phone back off, barely registering the small click of the button as his screen turned black. He held his phone tight, waiting for Roman to say something.

And after a few agonizing seconds of the most tense silence of Patton’s life, Roman spoke up. “…So …it is true then, huh?” Roman didn’t sound angry, not even frustrated in the slightest. His voice was quiet, and… calm? “Why?” No, not calm. He seemed… hurt. “Do you know how much I’ve been tearing myself apart over this?” Only now was when the hurt turned into mild anger, and Roman’s voice raised, only slightly. He still sounded weak and hurt.

Patton inched away again, slowly, until he was standing up off of the bed. He turned on his phone, without letting Roman see. Just in case.

“So… what? I mean, I was just guessing the first time. You guys seemed so adamant that it wasn’t true so I  _ wanted _ to believe you. I-- I told Remus right after because I was angry, I just… thought maybe you two  _ weren’t _ lying, but-- this just… Are you guys a thing now? Or are you keeping it a secret? What…” Roman spoke hesitantly, stumbling through his sentences in a breathy voice as he tried to piece it together.

Logan was staring at his phone. He wasn’t going to dare text Patton in case Roman would see again. What were they saying? Patton clearly typed that out in a hurry…

What in the hell was happening?

All Logan could do was watch his phone, hoping for a call, a text, anything… he was not going to make this worse on the other end.

And Patton  _ knew _ he couldn’t say anything. If he did, it would make everything even worse. Not only that, but he was also just slightly tipsy. So who knows what he would say? What if he just made it so much worse? He glanced at the door, then back at Roman.

Once Roman saw where Patton’s eyes had gone, he sat up slightly, knowing what was about to happen. Patton made his way for the door, which made Roman quickly stand up. Luckily though, Patton was closer. He made it out of the door before Roman could stop him.

Patton knew he couldn’t go down the stairs quickly enough before Roman could drag him back up, so he quickly dashed for the bathroom he was in before. Roman was right behind him, but fortunately, Patton locked it in time to keep him out. Patton cowered back into the bathroom, leaning against the sink as he stared at the door, where Roman was now yelling his name, asking him to let him in.

Patton slumped down to the floor, still using the sink counter for support. He started to hyperventilate. He was scared. He didn’t know what Roman was going to do. 

Logan wanted so desperately to send a message. Ask Patton if he needs help. To do  _ anything. _

But things could be getting resolved. Patton could be explaining things. It may be that nothing bad was even going on at all!

No, that can’t be true. That’s not possible.

But Logan texting again could make things so much worse. He needed to wait.

“Patton! You can’t just hide in there,” Roman stated. He wasn’t planning on doing anything, but this was just-- Roman couldn’t help himself. He’d doubted himself for so long. He had wondered if Patton was even doing anything with Logan at all, if Roman had just overreacted on Tuesday, freaking out in his desperation to keep Patton. But this… Patton’s lack of a response, his terrified, guilty expression… it told Roman everything he needed to know. He had been  _ right. _

All of this was getting to Roman’s head right now. A lot of bad things. His best friend for  _ eleven fucking years _ had been sleeping with his ex while they were still together. That shit  _ hurts. _

“Patton,  _ please! _ ” Roman begged, rage more evident in his voice as he thought through all of this. This whole situation. He hit his hand against the door, only once.

Patton moved further away from the door, scooting into the corner. More tears rolled down his face. He had nowhere to go.

Logan couldn’t handle it anymore. He sent one quick word, something Patton could read quickly and respond to quickly if in danger.

_ [help?] _

Logan just hoped he’d get a response quickly. He hoped that he would just get a response.

Patton got the message. He was about to type a response, but then had an idea. If Roman heard Patton calling for help, maybe it would get him to back off just a bit? Just enough to get him to stop acting like a maniac.

So that’s what Patton did. He went to Logan’s contact and clicked the call button.

The second Logan got the call, he lifted the phone to his ear, “Pat--” Logan was interrupted.

“Stop it already! Stop it!” Patton was yelling. Logan heard banging on a door, he heard Roman yell Patton’s name. He was begging Patton to open the door.

_ What the actual fuck? _

Logan spoke into the phone, “I’m on my way right now, stay on the phone Patton… please.” Logan stood and grabbed his keys, thanking all of the deities he didn’t believe in that he had kept his shoes on when getting home. Taking even an extra second to do  _ anything  _ right now would make Logan go crazy. 

As soon as Patton heard Logan’s voice, he let out a sob of relief. Of course he was still terrified, but just knowing Logan was gonna help him made him feel safe. He was also quick to speak.

“L-Logan I-I-I’m so sorry I didn’t-- didn’t listen. I should’ve never come, I’m so sor-sorry!” Patton spoke, stuttering through his sobs.

From the other side of the door, Roman could clearly hear Patton was speaking to someone. It was muffled, but he could tell. He wasn’t completely sure who it was, but Roman definitely had a clue. “Patton! Come out! Open the door!”

Patton got up and stood in the empty bathtub. Not much for protection, but he thought it was better than being out on the floor. Ignoring Roman, Patton kept rambling to Logan, “I told you-- you’re always right and-- and I didn’t listen! N-now I don’t know what to d-do!”

“No! No, now is not the time, Pat,” Logan turned his phone on speaker as he ran out of the door, ignoring the calls of his parents.

He quickly unlocked his car and climbed inside as he spoke, “You did what was right for you. Of course you would give everyone a chance! I don’t care that I was supposedly right. I didn’t want to be right!” By now, he was pulling out of the driveway. “All I want is for you to be safe and I’m going to make damn well sure that you are.”

“But I was wrong!” Patton was starting to take breaths between his sentences, along with hiccupping due to the crying, “I-I was so wrong about D-Dee and you tried to warn me, I’m so s-sorry!” Patton could feel himself shivering now, having trouble controlling his breathing. 

Roman had gotten a lot less loud now that he knew Patton was calling for help, but that didn’t stop him from trying to open the door. Roman had gone to his room to get a screwdriver. He was going to take the doorknob off.

And in that moment of silence where Roman was gone, Logan spoke into the phone with a caring, worried tone. He was so scared for Patton. “Patton, I’m begging you not to apologize. You did absolutely nothing wrong.  _ Please, _ just listen to me when I tell you I’m not angry at you. Not at all. I just want you to be safe.”

Logan continued to drive, and after another second he asked, “What is Roman doing? It’s quiet. What did he say to you and where are you? Try to calm down and tell me so that I can help you when I get there, okay?” Logan spoke softly, trying his best to get Patton to calm down.

Even though Logan told him not to apologize, it didn’t make Patton feel any better. He thought it was right to feel guilty about this. He was surprised at how calm Logan was. Then he had also taken notice of how quiet it got, once Logan mentioned it.

Patton peeked his head out from the bathtub’s shower curtain, “I’m not sure… I-I’m hiding in the bathroom and I don’t know what he’s--” And then he saw the door knob move.

He thought it was just Roman trying to open it, but then he saw it becoming loose. In a panic, Patton put his phone down and stepped out of the bathtub, rushing to the door to block it. “Stop it! Go away!”

Roman managed to loosen it just enough to have it drop. He began trying to push his way through. “Patton, please just let me in! I want to talk about this!” In response, Patton kept yelling at him to get away and leave.

Logan heard the muffled yelling. All it did was make him drive faster. About one more minute… he’s made the drive to Roman’s house more times in his life than he could count. He knew how long it would take to get there. Please, please just get there faster.

He just needed Patton to hold on a little longer.

Roman was much stronger than Patton, but right now, it didn’t matter. Patton was using everything he had to keep him out. Tears rolled down his face as he continued screaming at him to get out. Eventually, the door closed.

Patton didn’t know what happened, but he didn’t move. It was silence for a moment, and then--

There was a loud thud against the door, and Patton was knocked forward slightly. Was Roman seriously--!?

Patton quickly regained his balance, bracing himself in case Roman did it again.

“Open the door! I just want to talk. You’re gonna hurt yourself if you don’t move!” Roman said. Hurt himself? If anything, Patton was thinking Roman was gonna be the one to hurt him.

There was another sound of the door thudding, this time with a follow-up sound. Patton had fallen. Roman had gotten in. Patton tried getting to his feet, but Roman grabbed his arm before he could do so. Roman tried dragging him out, but Patton gripped the side of the door, screaming at him to let go. Roman only kept trying to get him out of there. He just wanted to fix this.

But it’s been long ruined.

Logan pulled into Roman’s driveway. He ran out of the car and up to the front door. 

Locked. Dammit.

He ran around the house and went through the back door. Luckily for Patton, those cowards who had fled the scene after ridiculing him had left the door completely unlocked.

Logan ran through the house, making his way through the living room, through the hallway that led to the stairs, and he climbed up them and--

He saw Patton, on the floor being dragged by Roman. Yelling, begging for him to let go. He saw Roman, who looked angry and hurt but that didn’t matter.

Logan punched him in the face.

Okay, so of course Roman wasn’t expecting anything like that to happen. It got him to let go of Patton, and he stumbled, but it didn’t send him to the ground. Roman held his hand over his nose, which was now bleeding. He wiped it with his sleeve, even though it kept going, and took a hard swing at Logan.

Logan was the source of all of his problems. Every little bad thing. Every little horrible thought. He just wanted to keep Patton. He  _ loved him.  _

Patton scooted away into the bathroom, curled up on the floor as he saw Logan attempt to duck away from the punch, but getting hit in the ribs and doubling over, coughing after the hit. Patton flinched at the sound. He was choking on his own sobs. He felt like he couldn’t breathe, like his heart was in his throat and walls were closing around him. All he could do was scream for Roman to stop.

Logan knew there was no way he could beat Roman in a fight.

“Patton, get out of here!” Logan yelled to him, using his hunched over position to reach around Roman’s legs and pull forward, knocking Roman onto his back.

Roman landed with a thud. It hurt like hell, but not as bad as he thought it would. Instead of getting up, Roman tried tried to kick Logan in the face, since he was still hunched over, but he missed and kicked Logan in the chest instead. Right where he had just been punched.

Logan held onto the spot and groaned, clearly in pain. He backed away from Roman slightly as Roman stood.

Patton hadn’t moved from his spot. He couldn’t leave Logan here alone to deal with Roman. Roman was his own problem, he couldn’t have Logan fight him like this. Patton had an idea, but he wasn’t sure if it would work, but it was the least he could do.

He rushed over, stepping out of the bathroom and between the two, on opposite ends of the hallway. He kept his eyes trained on Roman, and immediately after they made eye contact, Roman stopped. He stared at Patton, and watched as Patton slowly backed up, keeping his eyes trained on Roman, until he was right in front of Logan. Patton glared at Roman, standing strong as he took deep breaths to calm his breathing, dried tear tracks down his face and determination in his eyes.

Logan stared down in awe, and although he couldn’t see Patton’s face, he was just so… was there a word for how amazed he felt? How could he possibly describe how powerful Patton looked? How on earth was he so strong, after everything…

But despite how strong Patton looked in Logan’s eyes, both he and Roman saw the mild trembling, and they saw his tears. 

Logan looked back up to Roman, meeting his eyes as Patton backed up further, bumping into Logan and moving to the side to wrap his arms around him, still glaring furiously at Roman. However, Roman wasn’t looking at Patton.

Logan couldn’t decipher the look on Roman’s face. He was still angry, clearly, but he also looked so… hurt. He looked so betrayed, and sad, and it was agonizing. It was agonizing for Logan to see his best friend fall so far, to see him stoop so low. 

He wanted to talk to Roman. He wanted to talk to his best friend. He wanted to tell him how much he missed having him around. How much he missed being his friend.

But, he also wanted to tell him that this wasn’t the same person he befriended all those years ago. Roman has changed. He left Patton terrified and shaking, He had been ignoring Patton’s feelings for months before they broke up. He had gone on like this didn’t affect Patton at all, like  _ he _ was the victim… it made Logan wish for the friend he had before.

Logan closed his eyes to stop the tears, but as he opened them again, he could feel his eyes watering slightly through his glare. No matter how much sympathy Logan had, no matter what excuses he could make, Roman didn’t deserve any of it. 

Slowly, Logan reached his arm around Patton, protecting him, and he backed up. He took steps back, toward the end of the hall, and he kept his eyes on Roman despite the fact that Patton was now looking up at him.

Roman’s expression changed, and Logan could see it. It changed from all of those heart wrenching things to… acceptance. Angry acceptance, and hesitant acceptance, but acceptance nonetheless. He seemed to, hopefully, realize that this was his fault, that Patton didn’t want to speak with him, possibly ever again.

Oh god, Logan hoped so desperately that Roman realized exactly what he had done to hurt the trembling boy in Logan’s arms.

Most of all, he hoped that Roman would let them go.

Roman kept looking back and forth between them. Logan was looking directly at him, so whenever he looked at Logan, they made eye contact. Patton was looking up at Logan, and that sure did hurt. Whenever Roman looked at Logan, the hatred in his eyes was evident, but when he saw Patton again, it disappeared. Faded into sadness, and longing, and so many horrible, guilty feelings.

Roman’s intention wasn’t to hurt him. He planned on helping and comforting Patton. But then this big mess happened and just-- well, seeing the look on Patton’s face… the terror, and then the sudden sense of comfort that washed over him once he was next to Logan. Well, it made Roman scared of himself.

The air was tense and there was nothing but silence, save for the heavy breathing from all three of them. Roman didn’t move an inch, but he finally stood up fully as he watched Logan and Patton walk around the corner.

Logan led Patton down the hallway, through the living room and kitchen, and through the back door. He didn’t remove his arm the entire time.

Logan occasionally glanced back at the house, worried Roman would storm out after them… but he didn’t.

He brought Patton out to his car. He got him situated in the passenger seat with a blanket that had been sitting in the back. Patton curled himself up on the seat with the blanket wrapped around him. The situation played in his mind, over and over, despite Patton’s best efforts to stop it. From the humiliating dare up to Roman trying to drag him out of that bathroom. He hadn’t said a single word about the incident, and chances are, he was ever going to.

When they were a decent distance from the house, Logan spoke. He didn’t need to ask if Patton was okay. The fact that he most certainly was not okay was a given.

“What can I do to help you?” Logan spoke quietly, keeping his eyes on the road. He was very clearly in some emotional turmoil, and his voice made him sound like he was on the verge of tears. He  _ needed _ Patton to tell him what to do. Logan had no clue what there was left to even do.

He was lost, but so was Patton. They needed to navigate this together.

Patton stayed silent for a few seconds. Finally he responded.

“I just want to go home.”

Patton already knew what he was going to do when he got there. He was going to shut off his phone to avoid any messages or calls from people who have seen the video, and stay in his room, stay in his bed. Yes, he knew it was probably bad, but he didn’t see any other choice. Locking himself up in his room was usually his go to option.

In all honesty, he just needed somewhere peaceful. A place where he could feel safe.

“Yeah. Of course.”

There were so many words left unsaid. They could talk about the argument later. They could fix it later. For right now, Logan just needed to help Patton. Whatever that meant. Whatever Patton wanted, whatever Logan had to do, he would do it.

Logan could never be able to imagine what Patton has gone through. And still, he can be assured that this shivering, whimpering,  _ terrified _ Patton he sees now will be hidden behind a smiley, bubbly facade by next Monday. Patton has become good at pretending things are okay.

Logan glanced at him and his heart broke even more. He was wrapped up in the blanket. His seat belt wasn’t even on, because he was curled up in a ball, shivering. Logan took in a deep, shaky breath and focused back on the road.

Ever since Logan’s question, Patton didn’t speak. He kept his attention on small things. The small dashboard lights in the car, the continual pattern of light and darkness created by the streetlights, Logan’s hands turning the steering wheel whenever they turned. Small things, just to keep his mind off of literally  _ everything else.  _

He just wanted to go back home to sleep and pretend this never happened. Of course, Dee and Remus and practically everyone would probably never allow him to forget, but the least he can do is try. Oh gosh, who knows how many people have seen that video?

Oh gosh. 

_ Oh gosh! Logan saw the video! _

Oh jeez, if this wasn’t embarrassing before, it’s super embarrassing now. Patton wanted to hide out in his own room for as long as he lived. Why did this have to happen to him!? Wait, no. He knows why. It’s because he just  _ always _ tries to see the best in people. He  _ always _ has to try and be friends with them. He should have never given Dee the chance. Now look where he is.

Just the thought of it all… would it be worse than anything else that’s happened to him? Patton felt his eyes filling up with tears again, but he was trying his best to hold them back. He also used the blanket as a cover.

Logan pulled into Patton’s driveway, quietly whispering, “We’re here…”

He doesn’t know why he whispered. Maybe because he could hear Patton’s sniffling, could still hear his yells, crying for help. Maybe because he wanted to be gentle. Maybe because he was still ashamed because of the argument. Most likely a combination of all of those things.

Finally, Logan turned to look at Patton, “Do you… do you want me to help you inside?”

He was worried he had overstepped again. But seeing Patton’s broken expression, he just needed to ask. He needed to help him, and the only way he wouldn’t find some way to help is if Patton told him not to. 

There was just no way he could leave Patton here.

Patton was so glad to be back at his house. At least here he knows he would be allowed to do whatever he wants to deal with all of this and no one can judge him. When Logan asked the question, Patton was already taking his guesses as to why. Of course his immediate thought was that Logan felt bad, he felt pity for Patton due to what happened.

Patton was silent for a moment before removing the blanket. He looked over at Logan, a soft smile on his face. But the smile didn’t reach his eyes. “You don’t have to do that. I appreciate everything you’ve already done. You can go home.” He said that as if he was granting Logan  _ permission _ to leave. As if Logan wanted to.

“But what if I want to help, Patton? This isn’t out of pity or guilt or whatever… I’m worried about you, and I don’t want you to be alone, if I can help it.”

Logan looked into Patton’s eyes as he spoke, desperately trying to convey to him that this was something Logan  _ needed _ to do. Not to make up for the argument, not because he felt bad for Patton. But because he really, really cared about him.

Logan didn’t want to go home thinking about Patton here, alone, replaying everything in his mind on repeat and slowly digging himself deeper and deeper and deeper into the massive pit that’s been dug by the people who have hurt him most. Logan couldn’t let that happen.

Patton could tell how worried Logan must have been, but Patton honestly saw no reason for him to be. Patton figured Logan would be fine after a while, and move on from this. Still, Patton could sense something was up, and it was starting to make him feel bad. Letting Logan stay here for a bit wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing. It was the least Patton could do after dragging him out here to help him and arguing with him earlier today.

Speaking of which, Patton still hadn’t apologized for that. Well, he kinda had, over the phone call, but still-- Gosh. Patton felt the need to be sorry for so much stuff that’s happened. Stuff Logan didn’t need to be involved in, but was dragged into anyway.

After another moment, Patton nodded. “Okay then… Yeah. You can stay, if you want.” Patton wasn’t exactly sure how long Logan would want to stay, but either way, he wouldn’t argue. “What time do you think you’re gonna go home? It’s kinda late, after all…”

Patton didn’t want Logan to feel like he needed to stay here, or that he was forcing him to. 

And yet, Logan replied with no hesitation. He stated it like it was plain and simple fact, “I’ll stay as long as you need me here.”

Patton honestly had no clue how to respond to Logan’s words. Patton didn’t want him to think he had to stay. Then again, Patton also kinda did want him to stay? It was really complicated and he was confusing himself.

After that, Logan climbed out of the car and walked around, opening the passenger side door and leaning down, extending his hand to Patton with a small, slightly sad smile. It’s hard to smile after everything they’ve been through today, after all.

And suddenly, his thoughts were cut off when he heard his door open and saw Logan holding out his hand to him. And, surprise? Patton actually smiled a little. It wasn’t one of those “just to be polite” smiles, it was actually a genuine one. He was… so grateful.

Patton took Logan’s hand, climbing out of the car and discarding the blanket on the seat.


	36. Chapter 36

They held hands all the way up to the door. Logan waited patiently as Patton unlocked the door, and then they walked inside.

This place was significantly different at night, Logan thought. He’s only been here twice, but both of those times were at day. Now it was darker, and a lot more quiet. Every noise and sight seemed amplified. The closing of the door, the crickets outside, the ticking of a nearby clock that read 10:37, the warm light of streetlights shining through the small window on the front door as well as the two nearby windows, only slightly blocked by sheer curtains, the edges of Patton’s hair shining due to that light as he locked the door behind him, the feeling of Patton’s hand in his own.

If anyone was home, they were asleep. The house was very quiet.

And so were they. 

After Patton locked the door, he looked back up at Logan. He figured that holding his hand was probably getting weird, so he should probably let go now… which he did. And Patton did regret it, but he ignored that for now.

Logan glanced down at his now empty hand, hoping his face didn’t show any of the disappointment he had felt at the lack of contact.

“Do you want to just go to your room? I’ll happily play with the weasels and keep you company… I just don’t like the idea of you being alone after what just happened.”

It was a little weird to admit exactly why he decided to stay, but if Logan wanted to continue to help him in any way possible, he knew he needed to be completely honest from now on. No more hiding emotions, because Patton was probably dealing with enough as it is. He doesn’t need any more uncertainty coming from Logan, too.

Patton nodded in agreement at Logan’s words. The weasels probably missed Logan, anyway. “Yeah, that sounds nice,” Patton said, speaking just as quietly as Logan had. It was like they were afraid to break the calming silence. 

And, with a bit more determination, Patton, without any hesitation or even a shred of doubt, grabbed hold of Logan’s hand again and began leading the way upstairs.

As they walked through the dark hallways, Logan looked around. The loud yelling and fighting they’d just experienced alongside the adrenaline they had, compared to the quiet and darkness of the house was a strange and sudden change.

But now, with Patton holding onto his hand and soft light streaming in through every window they passed, Logan felt like he wanted this moment to last forever. To forget about what happened. To ignore what will inevitably happen on Monday when they return to school. He just wanted to keep holding Patton’s hand.

When they entered the room, the same quiet, calm lighting that had been shining through the windows downstairs was illuminating this room, but that was broken when Patton flicked on the light switch, lighting up the room with a warm, yellow light. 

In their cage, George peeked his head up from his previous position, cuddling with Fred, who was still asleep. George looked around, seemingly keeping guard.

Once he saw it was just their parents, George slowly climbed out of the cuddle pile with Fred so as not to disturb her, and trotted across the cage to greet Patton and Logan. He was scratching the cage and running around. 

Upon being moved around, Fred opened her eyes to look at them, and spotted Logan, who was obviously her favorite. She didn’t get up though, because she is pregnant, after all. She rolled on her side, clearly happy to see them.

Unfortunately, Patton had to let go of Logan’s hand to open the cage. He took the babies out and placed them on his bed. The second he was placed down, George jumped off the bed and ran over to Logan. Fred stayed on the bed though.

Patton giggled quietly, saying fondly, “Looks like they missed you.”

George was never even a huge fan of Logan, but he was just so happy and hyper. After meeting the demon Remus and knowing Roman for quite a long time, George knew damn well that Logan was the best person Patton had ever brought to meet them. 

Logan picked up George and held him in his hands, happy to see the babies too.

“I missed you too, little one,” He lifted George up and looked him in the eyes, having him held above Logan’s head. He then placed George on his shoulders, where there was plenty of room for him to move around. After that, Logan sat down on the bed and gently pet Fred, being careful not to bother her too much. He had a small, happy smile on his face since the moment the weasels left their cage.

Instead of sitting on the bed with them, Patton decided to sit on the floor, for some reason. He didn’t think much of it. Patton hugged his knees and really just let himself start thinking to himself. He was going to do this anyway, even if Logan wasn’t here.

Fred didn’t mind Logan petting her, and George seemed to allow it, but, just in case… George jumped off of Logan’s shoulders and laid by Fred. George then wrapped his body around Fred as protection, cuddling yet again.

But Logan had stopped petting Fred before George even jumped off his shoulders, because he was now looking at Patton with concern etched into his expression. 

After a few seconds of deliberation, Logan slowly climbed down from the bed and sat next to Patton, who was leaning against a wall. Logan then reached out to grab his hand. When Patton looked up at him, Logan smiled softly, saying to him, “You don’t have to talk about anything. I’m just here to make sure you don’t get lost in your thoughts. I’m here for you, okay?”

Patton really didn’t know what else to say. No, he really didn’t want to talk about it, but he couldn’t keep it bottled inside either. The more he let it stay there and fester in his head, the more he would have to think about it. As he interlocked their fingers, Patton turned his attention back to the ground. He’s pretty sure he wouldn’t have the courage to say  _ anything _ if Logan kept looking at him like that.

Patton was silent for a moment before taking a deep breath, and finally speaking quietly, “I think it’s kinda funny… how I always end up thanking you for things like this.”

“You’ve done the same for me countless times. I’ve never been in a situation like this…” Logan looked around the room as if that emphasized his point, “…but I’m definitely an expert in bottling my emotions. You just happened to be the one to… open it up, I guess?”

Logan paused for a few seconds before continuing, “So we’re even. I care about you, and this is not a burden to me. I’m more than happy to help you, Patton.” 

Patton was still unsure how he had even been able to do that. To help Logan open up. Sure, Logan has mentioned it a few times whenever things got rough. It kinda stuck as basic information now. That Patton just… did that somehow. He still had no clue how he had even been capable of doing something so important.

“Well, either way, thank you. I never really know how I can repay you and whenever I do, I always end up having to do it again,” Patton said, smiling for a moment. Their hands were still locked together. 

But then Patton’s smile faded slightly, and a thought crept into his head. It was always his fault, wasn’t it?

And yet, Logan cut him off before his thoughts could get worse. Like always. “Every time that you’ve had to supposedly ‘repay’ me for something you had no control over, the best ‘payment’ is seeing you smile again. I never need anything else.”

Did Patton really feel that way? That he needed to repay Logan for doing what a friend would normally do?

Patton knew it was probably bad to be feeling like apologizing was something he had to do, but what else could he possibly say? “I… I know I just-- well-- you do a lot for me, more than I could ever ask for and more than you have to do, and I never know how to thank you enough--”

And then Patton felt his hand be squeezed lightly, and he looked up at Logan to see a kind, sympathetic, and endlessly forgiving smile. 

“You  _ deserve _ to feel happy, Patton.”

Once again, Logan was right, just like always. This time, instead of saying thank you, Patton returned the smile. It was what Logan said he wanted, after all, right?

“And you deserve so much more credit than I do,” Logan leaned his head back against the wall behind them, looking up at the ceiling as he spoke, “You’ve been through a lot of terrible things and somehow you still seem to smile. Granted, some might be fake, but the real ones are still there. And that’s impressive. You’re so brave, Patton.”

He looked back at Patton, “And yet you still can’t seem to cut yourself some slack. You’re welcome, for helping you. But also thank you. For making me a better person and for… honestly, just being an angel that has… I guess… helped me in so many ways. You kind of saved me.” Logan cracked a smile at that.

“Oh please, I wouldn’t phrase it like that,” Patton giggled a bit at the thought. Him? An angel? He knows he can be nice and all, but he would never call himself something like that. “It’s just what friends are supposed to do for each other. I can’t help it,” Patton stated as though it was just some kind of fact.

“Plus, if anything,” Patton added, “ _ You _ should be considered an angel. I saved you? As if. You’re always there for me when I need you, and you’re amazing because of that.” Ah-- Patton should probably hold back on the compliments. 

“Well then, it seems you’ve just proved me right,” Logan grinned, “Based on what you just said right there, it’s either that what I do for you is just what friends do, just like what you do for me… therefore we’d be even. Or… that I’m apparently amazing for helping you, which would also make you amazing because you do the same for me. You’ve helped me in a different, but equally important way.”

Logan looked at Patton, choosing to ignore all of those compliments and what they did to his heart. That didn’t matter right now.

Oh gosh all of that was super confusing. Too hard for Patton’s kind of tired and slightly tipsy mind to make sense of. But by the looks of it, Logan had made some kind of point and honestly Patton had no idea how to argue. Well actually- did he even really want to argue? They were basically just going back and forth with saying how great the other was.

Patton quietly sighed to himself before saying, “Yeah, guess you’re right then. Well played, good sir. What, do you want a prize, too?” That was just a joke, of course Patton wasn’t being serious. Then again, he does have cookies downstairs, so he is prepared.

“Haven’t I already told you? Your smile is always enough.”

Logan leaned his head back against the wall, but continued to look at Patton. Maybe he was being a little too obvious, but at this point, he really doesn’t care.

Patton really couldn’t help but smile. He wasn’t even doing it on purpose. It was just like… Logan was somehow causing it without even trying.

Logan’s happiness grew when he saw Patton’s smile-- his real one --appear. It seems whatever he did worked.

And then George fell off the bed with a loud thud, landing in front of Patton. Logan directed his attention away from Patton (which he was quite sad to do as Patton’s smiles, their words, and the emotions of the moment seemed to do strange things to his heart) and focused on George.

“What are you doing down here?” Logan reached out to George to pet him, “What about your girlfriend up there, all pregnant and alone?”

And of course Logan knew the weasel didn’t understand him. But, like he’s said many times, things have changed, and for some reason, he felt like speaking to an animal. Patton has definitely changed him in a lot of ways, even in small ways.

George allowed Logan to pet him for a moment before making his way over to Patton. He climbed up Patton while he sat, eventually making his way to the top of Patton’s head. George rested there, looking over at the bed and making some weird little calls, which got Fred’s attention. The other weasel walked to the edge, but stayed there because, you know, can’t have her falling to the floor when she’s pregnant.

“It would’ve been nice if you escorted her,” Patton said to the weasel, who obviously didn’t respond. George curled up, just sitting happily on Patton’s head.

Logan watched the display, becoming more and more infatuated with Patton during every passing second. How on earth could someone be this perfect?

He shook his head, ignoring that for now, and reached over to Fred. Logan lifted her very, very gently and placed her in Patton’s lap. It seemed she wanted to get over to her dad and boyfriend, so Logan felt an obligation to help her out.

Patton was about to go and pet her, but the moment he was going to try, George had scattered off of Patton’s head onto the floor and into his lap. Yes, it did hurt. Those tiny little claws and that speed can definitely be painful.

Still, Patton grinned at George and Fred, “Aww!” George had wrapped himself over Fred as he looked at Patton. George had no regret nor sympathy. He thought he was doing a pretty good job at protecting the babies and his girl.

“Oh come on, George,” Logan glared down at the two before his resolve broke and he rolled his eyes, smiling at them.

He looked back up at Patton again, “How bad does it hurt? Are you bleeding? I know their claws are very sharp--” Logan reached up with one hand and gently touched the top of Patton’s head, moving the hair aside as he moved closer, looking in case there was any blood.

Maybe it was an excuse to get closer.

The scratches weren’t enough to have Patton bleed, but they were painful enough to have left some marks. They basically looked like the red marks you get when you scratch yourself with your nails.

“Hurts and feels pretty bad, but who knows. That’s probably just the feeling of betrayal, stabbing my heart,” Patton joked. He smiled a little awkwardly, suddenly conscious of what Logan was doing, “Does it look bad?”

Logan moved his hand away, sitting back down (although he was now sitting closer to Patton), “No, it looks fine. At least from what I could see.”

Man, Patton’s hair was soft. Logan tried to get rid of that thought as soon as it entered his brain.

“He may have ‘betrayed’ you, but look at that,” Logan gestured toward George and Fred’s current position, “He’s gonna be a good dad to your grandchildren.”

Patton glanced over at the two, and just-- awwww! Patton loves both of them so much, it’s really hard for him to stay mad at them. Then a sudden thought hit him. He looked over at Logan and asked, “How many babies do these guys usually have?”

There were two reasons he needed to know. One, he was probably gonna need a bigger cage, and two, he needed to know if he could legitimately name all of them after Harry Potter characters. The days those babies are born is gonna be the happiest day of Patton’s life.

Logan glanced away at Patton’s question, a little worried for how he’d respond to the answer.

“Well, from the research that I’ve done… it seems this specific species of weasel can have litters up to… fifteen.”

_ Fifteen babies!? _

Patton looked shocked at first, and then terrified. He would  _ definitely _ need a bigger cage. A good idea might even be go get a dog cage and fill it with a bunch of hamster toys and whatnot. It’s gonna take a lot of hard work to be a grandpa.

“So what I’m getting from this is…” Patton started, “Not only could I name the babies after the Weasley family, but also as other characters from Harry Potter, too,” Patton looked over at Logan, “Is that what you’re telling me?”

“Yes, but keep in mind it could easily be less than fifteen, Patton. Fifteen is the maximum,” Logan smiled at Patton’s enthusiasm. Patton seemed nervous, but that was mostly covered by how excited he was. 

“Buuuut it could also be fifteen! Which means I should have my hopes up and start getting prepared for our new grandchildren,” Patton stated confidently. Heck  _ yes _ he was ready.

Speaking of which, Patton should probably put Fred and George back in their cage now. He picked both of them up gently from his lap and walked over to the cage to place them inside. Now they can both rest easy and George can take care of his girl as they slept.

Logan watched Patton in silence as he stood and brought Fred and George to the cage.

_ Our grandchildren. _

Oh yes, it was absolutely stupid to get sentimental over weasel grandchildren. And Patton has said it before, but it still surprises Logan. Logan knew he shouldn’t be nearly as happy about it as he is, but there’s really no stopping it, is there?

He’s learned pretty quickly that emotions really aren’t rational. There’s no explaining them. So, Logan just sat and watched Patton put the weasels back, wearing a content smile on his face.

After making sure the weasels were situated, Patton sat back down next to Logan. Fred and George fell asleep almost instantly.

“I was thinking--” Patton started, “Since I’m naming the kids after the rest of the family and I already have a Potter, if there’s any girls I could probably name them Hermione or Luna. If you want, you could go ahead and name a few, too!” Patton offered. “The names you pick don’t really need to be Harry Potter related either. I just like the theme.”

“Well, I think if there’s another white one with black markings, like Fred, we should name it Hedwig. And one of my favorite characters was always Ginny, but since you’re doing the Weasley family, you probably already had her in mind.”

“Oh! If there’s an all black one, then there’s no debate, we  _ are _ naming it Sirius. I was thinking of naming one after Snape, but maybe I’ll just have it as a middle name or something,” And that sparked another idea for Patton, “Oooh my gosh! What if they all had middle names!” Patton bounced up and down excitedly as he thought about it, grinning at Logan from his seated position next to him.

Patton is already thinking about every little detail and these babies were far from being born. “As soon as they’re born, I’m having them watch all the movies so they can memorize their names. Obviously the books are better, but they can’t read, sooo-- Wait, maybe I can read to them!”

Logan literally did not care in the slightest that what Patton was saying was illogical. An animal couldn’t watch a movie or interpret language. But did Logan give a shit? Absolutely not.

He smiled at Patton’s enthusiasm and excitement. This was good for him, having something to look forward to.

“Well then, we have to find middle names, but they have to match with the first name, obviously. We can’t have one named Neville with the middle name Draco. They have to have similar personalities! Unless you want to, for example, name one Harry Potter Kratz, and make their original last names into their middle names,” Logan suggested.

“Okay, okay, that makes sense,” Patton said, “But how about this? Depending on how many there are, we do half and half. Like, if there ends up being fourteen, seven could have my last name and seven could have your last name. Oh! And if there’s an odd number we could just combine our last names or something. Only so it evens out, ya know?”  
It was clear that Patton was going to have a lot of fun being a grandparent. He’s never taken care of weasels when they were babies, but hopefully it won’t be too different from taking care of Fred and George. Also, clearly Fred and George are the best couple in the world. They’re gonna make great parents.

Except Logan’s mind was focused on something Patton said. Combining last names?? Ugh, how was Patton so oblivious as to how  _ that _ made Logan feel? This boy was killing him.

Logan smiled at Patton, ignoring his thoughts. “Wow, you’re really excited about this… me too. Trust me, I’ll help take care of them. I know that even with only two weasels it seems a little stressful for you.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that. They are mostly my responsibility anyway. Besides, I don’t think George would be letting me or you touch his babies anytime soon. It really shouldn’t be so hard to take care of them.”

However, Patton was talking about  _ fifteen _ newly made babies. There’s no way he would be able to handle that much on his own. He was delusional, but… he had the spirit?

“Sure. I don’t have to, but I want to. And I’m pretty sure even the most insane, animal-obsessed person in the world would be pulling their hair out if they had seventeen weasels in their house,” Logan joked.

Knowing that Logan actually wanted to help out really made Patton happy. He enjoyed Logan’s company anyway, so what’s the harm in letting him help with the babies.

Wait--

Hold on.

_ Weasels don’t eat their babies, right?? _

Whatever, not important right now. “Okay then, thanks! If it gets too tiring for you or anything, you could back out anytime. I would understand because like you said, it would be pretty hard work.”

“Well, you keep saying they’re our grandchildren, so you’re not getting rid of me that easily,” Logan grinned after he said that.

Logan then glanced down at his watch and saw that it was 11:42. Had they really been talking that long? Now that he thinks about it… Would Patton let him sleep over? That certainly would not do good things to Logan’s heart. But if Patton wanted him to, he would stay. There’s no debating that.

Patton scoffed at Logan’s comment, “Fortunately, I don’t think I could get rid of you even if I wanted to,” It was pretty much true. Even if, in brief moments, Patton might have wanted Logan gone in the past… it always ended quickly. Patton always ended up coming back, because Logan kept proving that he could change and fix his mistakes in the future.

Patton hadn’t been paying any attention to the clock, so he wasn’t aware of how late it was getting. Did he really care though? He liked talking to Logan. Their conversations just… always made everything so much better.

There had been a promise Logan made to himself earlier tonight. To be completely honest with Patton. So, he might as well just go and say exactly what he was thinking.

“Do you might if I spend the night here, Patton?” Logan was looking down at the floor, a little embarrassed for asking. But he really, genuinely wanted to. He couldn’t just wait for Paton to ask, he has to show Patton that he wants this bad enough to straight up ask for it.

And Patton was definitely not expecting something like that, but then again, it wouldn’t be an issue at all. Not only that, but did Patton even really need to ask if Logan genuinely wanted to stay? He had asked, after all.

Patton smiled, a little awed that Logan would even want to stay at all, and answered, “Go ahead. I don’t have a problem with it. If you want, I can just sleep on the floor and you can sleep on the bed,” He had a feeling Logan might be okay with that. Emphasis on the ‘might.’

“No, you’re getting the bed,” Logan said matter-of-factly, like this was not going to be a debate.

There were a few seconds of silence then, and both of them were smiling. Things seemed so much better already. The calm atmosphere from the moment they entered the house arrived again, and although they were surrounded by the warm yellow light of the floor lamp nearby, and the windows were closed, keeping out most of the noise of the outside world, it still felt just as calm. 

After everything that happened today, from the argument at the vet to the moment Logan and Patton left Roman’s house… they needed this. To just breathe.

Logan hoped his next words were okay to say, “Are you…” He looked up at Patton, “Are you doing better now?”

There was a lot of weight to those words. Logan wanted to know if Patton was okay, or at least better. He wanted to know if he’d done the right thing. He still felt guilt for their argument, and… what made him feel even more guilty was the fact that he still felt-- at least a little bit-- guilty for punching Roman. But he deserved it.

There were a lot of things Logan needed to know, but the most important thing was knowing if Patton was okay. And if he didn’t, Logan would do whatever he could to help.

Patton nodded to the question after a few seconds, his smile softening, “Better than ever.” It wasn’t sarcasm or some kind of snarky comment. It was just the truth.

It was like whenever he was with Logan, or just so much as speaking to him, Patton forgot about his problems. He wouldn’t really call Logan a distraction, or a crutch. He was more like… a gift? Because whenever Patton wasn’t exactly feeling right, Logan would be there to help. Patton knew he didn’t deserve someone as great as Logan. Oh! That’s it! A blessing. That’s what Logan is to him. It’s no wonder he could never find the perfect way to thank him.

Logan looked a little shocked at Patton’s genuine response. He looked up at him and let himself smile out of relief and just… joy.

“I’m just so glad you’re happy… and safe,” Logan resumed holding hands with Patton, like they had been before. He noticed he’s been doing that a lot lately.

Patton was honestly pretty surprised he got Logan to smile like that. He loved it though. “Well, technically I wouldn’t be happy and safe if it wasn’t for you. So once again, thank you.”

Patton kept his grasp on Logan’s hand, not really seeming to mind how long they’ve been doing this for. It kinda got to the point where he’s just so used to that it would feel weird if they stopped.

“Okay, okay. You’re welcome,” Logan gave in, “You’re clearly not going to give up on that.” Logan let out a small laugh, leaning his head back against the wall.

He paused for another second before continuing, “But I get to thank you for everything you’ve done for me. So thank you, Patton. For forcing me to realize that all of those years of people telling me I’m an emotionless robot… thank you for helping me realize none of it was real.” He turned back to face Patton with a gentle smile.

And then he stood up. Logan kept their hands laced together, pulling Patton up, too.

“You should get ready for bed. I’ll walk out for a bit so you can get changed, okay?

Patton had no clue what to say to Logan’s words, but he was cut off anyway by being pulled up from his seated position. He had wanted to say you’re welcome, but-- oh well. He nodded to Logan’s question, watching as Logan’s smile grew slightly before he walked out of the room.

As he got changed into his cat onesie (because, duh), Patton again thought about how Logan phrased his words when he said thank you. To know that Patton had been able to do all of that for Logan-- it just made him feel really special. Like he was important.

While Logan was out in the hallway, he looked through his phone. So many notifications, all of the same link…

He thought he’d be more angry about it, but honestly, Logan was just sad. He didn’t know people could be quite so cruel. Obviously terrible things happened in the world, but for it to happen on such a small scale, to such a wonderful person, for literally no reason other than taking joy in being cruel to others… it was just sad.

Logan also had a few texts from Virgil, asking about the video and what happened. Logan decided to ignore them for now, he would rather explain everything when he had more time.

And then he saw some texts from two numbers. One was blocked, and the other was unknown.

His phone didn’t show him what the blocked number had sent. Only that they had sent something. And the only person Logan had ever blocked in his life was Roman, so… no way in hell was he opening those messages.

And then the unknown number. All it said was…

_ [I hope you enjoyed the video, Logan.] _

Logan glared at the message for a second before he heard the door opening behind him. He turned around and--

_ Oh. _ Oh my lord that’s cute.

Patton wasn’t really all too sure what Logan was thinking when he saw the onesie, but expression clearly wasn’t normal. Anywho, who cares? The onesie just made Patton happy. He enjoyed wearing it. He wasn’t going to bring it up though. 

Instead, he asked, “Are you sure you don’t want to have the bed to yourself? I’m really fine with sleeping on the floor. I’ve fallen asleep on the floor before. Granted, it was an accident, but I didn’t see a problem with it!”

Yeah, Patton was still trying to convince Logan that he should have the bed. It just felt like the right thing to do. Especially since Logan got punched and kicked in the chest today… Not really great to be lying on the ground.

“No, it’s your house and your bed. I don’t want to impose,” Logan smiled at him, trying to convey that he really wasn’t upset.

Honestly, Logan didn’t care about sleeping on the floor. What bothered him is that this impromptu sleepover left him with no change of clothes. Therefore, he’d be sleeping in jeans and a button-up shirt. Oh well, this was for Patton.

Walking past Patton and into the room, Logan took off his shoes and sat on the floor after taking one of the numerous blankets and pillows on Patton’s very comfortable looking bed.

Patton kept trying to think. What would be a good way of convincing… wait. He had an idea.

“Weeeeell. You wouldn’t be imposing because you can take this as a way of me thanking you! This is gonna be how I repay you and you can’t say no because there’s no way you can’t accept.” Patton, obviously, thought that made perfect sense.

He grabbed the blanket and pillow from Logan’s hands and said, “So in other words, you get the bed.” No way was he gonna let Logan sleep on the floor. He was injured and he had just come to help Patton when he really didn’t need to. Patton was grateful and this was gonna happen. It didn’t matter how long he had to argue.

“Okay,” Logan accepted a little too easily, sitting down on the bed. He sat there for a few seconds.

And then he grabbed Patton’s wrist and yanked him down so he fell, fast first onto the mattress.

“If that’s a viable way of saying thank you, then you get the bed as thanks from me. It’s how This is going to be how  _ I _ repay  _ you, _ ” and then Logan quoted Patton directly, “And you can’t say no because there’s no way you can’t accept.” Logan grinned.

Patton sat up, looking over at Logan and fake glared for the sake of this playful atmosphere they had, “Well then, in order to say thank you for thanking me, as a thank you, you can sleep on the bed. Using that logic, you get it!” Patton was definitely not going to quit anytime soon.

Logan stood up from the bed and walked over to Patton’s closet. Once there, he opened the door and began to dig around for a minute. Trying to ignore the pink lion plush he found buried in there, Logan turned around, holding a deck of uno cards. He opened up the package and found what he wanted. He showed a blue reverse card at Patton.

Okay, maybe now he was just being petty, but Patton and Virgil always said things like “no u” and “uno reverse card” whenever they wanted to switch something back onto another person. Maybe Patton would listen to this, since he liked that joke??

Patton was, initially, very confused as to why Logan was going through his closet, but he wasn’t going to stop him. And then he got that gosh darn card got pulled out and Patton just couldn’t help himself from laughing. He thought it was so funny to see something like  _ that _ come from Logan! After a moment of laughing, Patton eventually calmed down enough to speak.

“That’s so unfair! First of all, those are my uno cards! You can’t use them against me like that!”

Logan nearly melted when he saw Patton laugh like that. Wow, that has certainly been a rare sight lately.

“Hey, I keep getting you to smile, and that is my goal, isn’t it?” Logan grinned. But, he did kind of have a plan. Maybe he could just take the bed and then… switch places with Patton once Patton was asleep? Yeah, that sounded good. No way was Logan going to take that bed.

So, he finally said, “Fine, I’ll take the bed. You win.” Logan sat down on the edge of the bed next to Patton.

“Hmmm,” Patton definitely wasn’t sure if he should believe him or not, “I don’t know, last time you said that, you pulled me down and made me look into the dark, endless void,” Patton joked, “Should I really take your word on that?”

Still, Patton stayed seated on the bed next to Logan. He had a smile on his face just from this overall conversation. Just talking to Logan made him so happy.

“Yes, if you want me to sleep on the bed so badly, I’ll go on the bed,” Logan looked directly at Patton. And just like Patton, Logan was overjoyed. This whole conversation made Logan happier than he’s been in weeks.

Finally! Now Patton felt like he accomplished something. “And you  _ will _ sleep here, correct? I don’t want you pulling any tricks or loop holes here.” Patton demanded. He felt like Logan might have some tricks up his sleeve and he wanted to be prepared for it. “It will make me very happy if you stay here for tonight. No sleeping on the floor under any circumstances.”

Well, that was hard to say no to. Still, Logan definitely wasn’t backing down on his plan, “Yes, I’ll sleep here, Patton.”

Patton smiled, thinking he did a good job, “Great! Wait-- wait, wait--” Patton turned around slightly, readjusting himself until his entire body was facing Logan, and he lifted his pinky finger.

“Pinky promise. Just have to take extra precautions and stuff,” Patton grinned, but besides that, he looked completely serious about this. Like it was a business deal.

Oh.  _ Oh shit _ that was way too cute. Logan just kind of stared at Patton’s hand for a good two or so seconds before realizing that Patton was waiting for him.

He cleared his throat, looking up from Patton’s hand and making eye contact before he wrapped his pinky around Patton’s, “Uh, yeah… pinky promise,” Logan smiled after that.

Patton was going to be the death of him.

“Okay, great!” Pinky promises are like the most sacred thing to Patton. So, it signifies some level of immense trust or something. Don’t ask why.

After a moment, he let go of Logan’s hand and climbed off the bed so he could start preparing a makeshift bed on the floor.

Minutes had passed, the light was turned off, and the room was almost in complete darkness, save for the soft, faint whitish-blue light shining in past the curtains of the two windows in Patton’s room.

“Goodnight, Patton,” Logan said quietly.

“Night, Logan,” Patton responded.

\------

Probably about thirty minutes had passed. Logan really  _ did _ want to move Patton into the bed overnight and take his own place on the floor, because after everything Patton’s been through, he also didn’t need to have his bed hijacked. But, even though Logan was slightly upset at his initial plan being ruined, it sure was ruined in the most adorable way possible.

Still, Logan stood up out of the bed and knelt down next to Patton. He left him up, careful not to wake him up, and brought him over to the bed.

As Logan was holding Patton, his first thought was…

_ He’s way too light. _

Logan remembered Patton’s unwillingness to eat for this past week, which had probably lasted weeks before the breakup, anyway. He still barely ate much now. Probably even less, given the circumstances.

Logan tried to ignore that for now, placing Patton down on the right side of the bed. He walked back around and climbed in on the left side, careful to keep his distance.

A good compromise. That’s all this was. He didn’t want Patton laying on the floor, just like Patton didn’t want him laying on the floor. Logan was just being considerate, and that was that.

Still, Logan couldn’t help but look at Patton’s calm expression. It’s been a long time since he looked so peaceful. Logan let out a sigh, turning away from Patton, and after a good half hour of replaying the major events of the past week or so in his brain, he fell asleep.

He really had wanted to sleep on the floor. But then Patton had to do that damn pinky promise. Logan, for some reason, just knew he couldn’t ignore that.


	37. .

I’m sorry for anyone who really enjoyed this story, but it’s going on temporary hiatus for a bit. The person I was writing this with has kind of discontinued the roleplay that inspired this fanfic.

So, I’m going on a temporary hiatus for a bit. I might continue the story on my own in the future, but I’m not sure. I just wanted to add that final chapter to leave the story in a bit more of a positive light, and to explain where the title came from.

Thank you all for enjoying the story so far. I have some more story ideas though, but I’m not sure if they’ll be sanders sides related— but again, thank you.


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